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THE     PASTORAL    EPISTLES. 


BY   THE   REV. 


ALFRED     PLUMMER,     M.A.,    D.D., 

Master  of  University  College^  Durham  ;  /ornterly  Fellow  and  Senior  Tutor  of 

Trinity  College,   Oxford. 

Author  of  "  The  Church  of  the  Early  Fathers"  and  FUiitor  o/  "  The 

Gospel  and  Epistles  of  St.  John"  etc. 


NEW    YORK: 

A.  C.  ARMSTRONG  &  SON, 

714    BROADWAY. 


CONTENTS. 


INTRODUCTORY. 
CHAPTER    I. 

VAGB 

THE  CHARACTER  AND  THE  GENUINENESS    OF  THE  PASTORAL 

EPISTLES  ••---••••3 

1    TIMOTHY, 

CHAPTER  II. 

TIMOTHY  THE  BELOVED   DISCIPLE  OF  S.  PAUL. — HIS  LIFE  AND 

CHARACTER    ---------      I9 

CHAPTER  IIL 
THE   DOCTRINE    CONDEMNED    IN    THE   PASTORAL    EPISTLES    A 

JEWISH  FORM   OF  GNOSTICISM. — ^THE   GNOSTIC'S  PROBLEM      32 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE     MORAL     TEACHING     OF     THE     GNOSTICS. — ITS     MODERN 

COUNTERPART  •---••--42 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE  lord's  COMPASSION  IN  ENABLING  A  BLASPHEMER  AND 
A  PERSECUTOR  TO  BECOME  A  SERVANT  OF  CHRIST 
JESUS  AND  A   PREACHER  OF  THE   GOSPEL        -  -  -      $2 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  VI. 

PAGE 
THE    PROPHECIES     ON     TIMOTHY. — THE     PROPHETS    OF    THE 
NEW     TESTAMENT     AN     EXCEPTIONAL      INSTRUMENT     OF 
EDIFICATION  ---------62 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  PUNISHMENT  OF  HYMEN^US  AND  ALEXANDER, — DE- 
LIVERING TO  SATAN  AN  EXCEPTIONAL  INSTRUMENT  OP 
PURIFICATION. — THE   PERSONALITY   OF   SATAN  -  -      72 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

ELEMENTS  OF  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP:  INTERCESSORY  PRAYER 
AND  THANKSGIVING. — THE  SOLIDARITY  OF  CHRISTENDOM 
AND  OF  THE   HUMAN   RACE     ------      82 

CHAPTER  IX. 

BEHAVIOUR    IN    CHRISTIAN    WORSHIP. — MEN's    ATTITUDE    OF 

BODY.  AND   MIND. — WOMEN'S  ATTIRE  AND  ORNAMENT       -      94 

CHAPTER   X. 

THE      ORIGIN       OF       THE       CHRISTIAN       MINISTRY. — VARIOUS 

CERTAINTIES  AND   PROBABILITIES   DISTINGUISHED  -  -    I04 

CHAPTER  XI. 

THE  IaPOSTLE'S  RULE   RESPECTING  SECOND   MARRIAGES. — ITS 

MEANING  AND  PRESENT  OBLIGATION        -  -  -  -   I18 

CHAPTER  XII. 
THE  RELATION    OF    HUMAN    CONDUCT    TO  THE    MYSTERY    OF 

GODLINESS       ---------130 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
THE    COMPARATIVE    VALUE    OF     BODILY     EXERCISE     AND    OF 

GODLINESS       ---------141 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

PAGE 
THE  pastor's    behaviour  TOWARDS  WOMEN. — THE  CHURCH 

WIDOW -  -  -  -  -151 

CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  pastor's  RESPONSIBILITIES  IN  ORDAINING  AND  JUDGING 
PRESBYTERS. — THE  WORKS  THAT  GO  BEFORE  AND  THAT 
FOLLOW  US---------   164 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  NATURE  OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY  AND  THE  APOSTLE'S  ATTI- 
TUDE TOWARDS  IT. — ^A   MODERN   PARALLEL     -  -  "175 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  GAIN  OF  (A  LOVE  OF  GODLINESS  AND  THE  UNGODLI- 
NESS OF  A  LOVE  OF  GAIN       -  -  -  •  -  I88 

TITUS, 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  EPISTLE  TO  TITUS. — HIS   LIFE  AND  CHARACTER      -  -  20I 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE     CHURCH      IN     CRETE      AND      ITS      ORGANIZATION. — ^THE 

apostle's  DIRECTIONS   FOR  APPOINTING  ELDERS    -  -   212 

CHAPTER  XX. 

CHRISTIANITY  AND  UNCHRISTIAN   LITERATURE       •  -  -  .24 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE      MEANING     AND     VALUE     OF      SOBERMINDEDNESS. — THE 

USE  AND  ABUSE  OF  RELIGIOUS  EMOTION  -  -  -  237 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

PACK 

THE  MORAL   CONDITION   OF  SLAVES. — ^THEIR  ADORNMENT  OF 

THE  DOCTRINE  OF   GOD-  --•••-   248 


CHAPTER  XXIIL- 

HOPE    AS     A     MOTIVE     POWER. — THE     PRESENT     HOPES     OF 

CHRISTIANS    ---------  259 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

THE  DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE  TO  AUTHORITY  WITH  ITS  LIMITS. — 

THE  DUTY  OF  COURTESY  WITHOUT  LIMITS     -  -  -  27O 

CHAPTER   XXV. 

THE  CO-OPERATION   OF  THE  DIVINE    PERSONS    IN    EFFECTING 

THE  NEW  BIRTH.— THE  LAVER  OF  REGENERATION  -  282 

CHAPTER  XXVL 

THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY  IN  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT  AND 
THE  apostle's  DIRECTIONS  RESPECTING  HERETICAL 
PERSONS  ------••-294 


a  TIMOTHY. 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

THE  CHARACTER  AND   CONTENTS  OF    THE    LAST    EPISTLE    OF 

S.   PAUL. — THE  NEMESIS  OF  NEGLECTED  GIFTS  -  -  309 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

THE  HEARTLESSNESS   OF   PHYGELUS  AND   HERMOGENES. — THE 

DEVOTION   OF   ONESIPHORUS. — PRAYEFS  FOR    THE    DEAD    319 


CONTENTS.  bi 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

PAGE 
THE    NEED    OF    MACHINERY    FOR     THE     PRESERVATION    AND 
TRANSMISSION     OF     THE     FAITH. — ^THE     MACHINERY     OF 
THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH  -  -  -  -  -  -  331 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

THE      christian's     LIFE     AS      MILITARY      SERVICE;      AS     AN 

ATHLETIC  contest;  AS  HUSBANDRY        -  -  -  -  343 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

THE     POWER     OF     A     BELIEF     IN     THE     RESURRECTION    AND 

THE  INCARNATION. — THE  GOSPEL  OF  S.   PAUL  -  -  353 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 

THE  NEED  OF  A  SOLEMN  CHARGE  AGAINST  A  CONTRO- 
VERSIAL SPIRIT,  OF  A  DILIGENCE  FREE  FROM  SHAME, 
AND  OF  A  HATRED  OF  THE  PROFANITY  WHICH  WRAPS 
UP  ERROR   IN  THE  LANGUAGE  OF  TRUTH        -  -  -  364 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

THE  LAST  DAYS. — THE  BEARING  OF  THE  MENTION  OF 
JANNES  AND  JAMBRES  ON  THE  QUESTION  OF  INSPI- 
RATION  AND  THE  ERRORS   CURRENT  IN   EPHESUS  -  "375 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

THE  PERILS  OF  RATIONALISM  AND  THE  RESPONSIBILITIES 
OF  A  LIFELONG  CONTACT  WITH  TRUTH. — THE  PROPERTIES 
OF  INSPIRED  WRITINGS-  -----  385 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 

THE  PARADOXICAL  EXULTATION  OF  THE  APOSTLE. — HIS 
APPARENT  FAILURE  AND  THE  APPARENT  FAILURE  OF 
THE   CHURCH. — THE   GREAT   TEST   OF   SINCERITY      -  -    397 


Contents. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

PAGE 

THE  PERSONAL  DETAILS   A  GUARANTEE  OF  GENUINENESS       -  406 


CHAPTER  XXXVn. 

THE  APOSTLE  FORSAKEN  BY  MEN  BUT  STRENGTHENED  BY 
THE  LORD. — THE  MISSION  TO  THE  GENTILES  COM- 
PLETED.—THE  SURE  HOPE,  AND  THE  FINAL  HYMN  OF 
PRAISE  --  ,------  418 


INTRODUCTORY. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  CHARACTER  AND   THE  GENUINENESS  OF   THE 
PASTORAL  EPISTLES. 

"  Paul,  an  Apostle  of  Christ  Jesus." — I  Tim.  i ;  2  Tim.  I  I, 
*'  Paul,   a  servant  of  God,  and  an  Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ."— 
Titus  i.  i. 

THE  first  question  which  confronts  us  on  entering 
upon  the  study  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  is  that  of 
their  authenticity,  which  of  late  has  been  confidently 
denied.  In  reading  them  are  we  reading  the  farewell 
words  of  the  great  Apostle  to  the  ministers  of  Christ  ? 
Or  are  we  reading  only  the  well-meant  but  far  less 
weighty  counsels  of  one  who  in  a  later  age  assumed 
the  name  and  imitated  the  style  of  St.  Paul  ?  It  seems 
necessary  to  devote  the  first  of  these  expositions  to  a 
discussion  of  this  question. 

The  title  ^'  Pastoral  Epistles "  could  hardly  be  im- 
proved, but  it  might  easily  be  misunderstood  as  imply- 
ing more  than  is  actually  the  case.  It  calls  attention 
to  what  is  the  most  conspicuous,  but  by  no  means 
the  only  characteristic  in  these  Epistles.  Although  the 
words  which  most  directly  signify  the  pastor's  office, 
such  as  '^shepherd,"  ''feed,"  ''tend,"  and  "fiock,"  do 
not  occur  in  these  letters  and  do  occur  elsewhere  in 
Scripture,  yet  in  no  other  books  in  the  Bible  do  we 
find  so  many  directions  respecting  the  pastoral  care 
of  Churches.     The  title  is  much  less  appropriate  to 


INTRODUCTORY, 


2  Timothy  than  to  the  other  two  Epistles.  All  three 
are  both  pastoral  and  personal ;  but  while  I  Timothy 
and  Titus  are  mainly  the  former,  2  Timothy  is  mainly 
the  latter.  The  three  taken  together  stand  between  the 
other  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  and  the  one  to  Philemon. 
Like  the  latter,  they  are  personal ;  like  the  rest,  they 
treat  of  large  questions  of  Church  doctrine,  practice, 
and  government,  rather  than  of  private  and  personal 
matters.  Like  that  to  Philemon,  they  are  addressed, 
not  to  Churches,  but  to  individuals  ;  yet  they  are 
written  to  them,  not  as  private  friends,  but  as  delegates, . 
though  not  mere  delegates,  of  the  Apostle,  and  as  officers 
of  the  Church.  Moreover  the  important  Church  matters 
of  which  they  treat  are  regarded,  not,  as  in  the  other 
Epistles,  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  congregation  or 
of  the  Church  at  large,  but  rather  from  that  of  the 
overseer  or  minister.  And,  as  being  official  rather  than 
private  letters,  they  are  evidently  intended  to  be  read 
by  other  persons  besides  Timothy  and  Titus. 

Among  the  Epistles  which  bear  the  name  of  St.  Paul 
none  have  excited  so  much  controversy  as  these, 
especially  as  regards  their  genuineness.  But  the  con- 
troversy is  entirely  a  modern  one.  It  is  little  or  no 
exaggeration  to  say  that  from  the  first  century  to  the 
nineteenth  no  one  ever  denied  or  doubted  that  they 
were  written  by  St.  Paul.  It  is  true  that  certain 
heretics  of  the  second  century  rejected  some  or  all  of 
them.  Marcion,  and  perhaps  Basilides,  rejected  all 
three.  Tatian,  while  maintaining  the  Apostolicity  of 
the  Epistle  to  Titus,  repudiated  those  to  Timothy. 
And  Origen  tells  us  that  some  people  doubted  about 
2  Timothy  because  it  contained  the  names  of  Jannes  and 
Jambres,  which  do  not  occur  in  the  Old  Testament. 
But  it  is  will    known   that   Marcion   in   framing   his 


GENUINENESS  OF  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES, 


mutilated  and  meagre  canon  of  the  Scriptures,  did  not 
profess  to  do  so  on  critical  grounds.  He  rejected 
everything  excepting  an  expurgated  edition  of  St. 
Luke  and  certain  Epistles  of  St.  Paul,— not  because  he 
doubted  their  authenticity,  but  because  he  disliked 
their  contents.  They  did  not  fit  into  his  system. 
And  the  few  others  who  rejected  one  or  more  of  these 
Epistles  did  so  in  a  similar  spirit.  They  did  not 
profess  to  find  that  these  documents  were  not  properly 
authenticated,  but  they  were  displeased  with  passages 
in  them.  The  evidence,  therefore,  justifies  us  in  assert- 
ing that,  with  some  very  slight  exception  in  the  second 
century,  these  three  Epistles  were,  until  quite  recent 
times,  universally  accepted  as  written  by  St.  Paul. 

This  large  fact  is  greatly  emphasized  by  two  con- 
siderations, (i)  The  repudiation  of  them  by  Marcion 
and  others  directed  attention  to  them.  They  were 
evidently  not  accepted  by  an  oversight,  because  no  one 
thought  anything  about  them.  (2)  The  evidence 
respecting  the  general  acceptance  of  them  as  St.  Paul's 
is  full  and  positive,  and  reaches  back  to  the  earliest 
times.  It  does  not  consist  merely  or  mainly  in  the 
absence  of  evidence  to  the  contrary.  TertuUian  * 
wonders  what  can  have  induced  Marcion,  while  accept- 
ing the  Epistle  to  Philemon,  to  reject  those  to  Timothy 
and  Titus  :  and  of  course  those  who  repudiated  them 
would  have  pointed  out  weak  places  in  their  claim  to 
be  canonical,  if  such  had  existed.  And  even  if  we  do 
not  insist  upon  the  passages  in  which  these  Epistles 
are  almost  certainly  quoted  by  Clement  f  of  Rome  (c. 
A.D.  95),  Ignatius  of  Antioch  (c.  a.d.  112),  Polycarp  of 


*  Adv.  Marc.j  V.  xxi. 

"j"  Clem.  Rom.  I.  ii.,  xxix.,  Ixi. ;  Ign.  Magn.  viii,,  Pol.  passim  ;  Poly- 


INTRODUCTORY, 


Smyrna  (c.  a.d.  112),  and  Theophilusof  Antioch  (c.  a.d. 
1 80),  we  have  direct  evidence  of  a  very  convincing  kind. 
They  are  found  in  the  Peshitto,  or  early  Syriac 
Version,  which  was  made  in  the  second  century.  They 
are  contained  in  the  Muratorian  canon,  the  date  of 
which  may  still  be  placed  as  not  later  than  a.d.  170. 
Irenaeus,  the  disciple  of  Polycarp,  states  that  ''Paul 
mentions  Linus  in  the  Epistle  to  Timothy,"  and  he 
quotes  Titus  iii.  lO  with  the  introduction  "  as  Paul  also 
says."  Eusebius  renders  it  probable  that  both  Justin 
Martyr  and  Hegesippus  quoted  from  I  Timothy  ;  and  he 
himself  places  all  three  Epistles  among  the  universally 
accepted  books  and  not  among  the  disputable  writings  : 
i.e,^  he  places  them  with  the  Gospels,  Acts,  I  Peter, 
I  John,  and  the  other  Epistles  of  St.  Paul,  and  not  with 
James,  2  Peter,  2  and  3  John,  and  Jude.  In  this 
arrangement  he  is  preceded  by  Clement  of  Alexandria 
and  TertuUian,  both  of  whom  quote  frequently  from  all 
three  Epistles,  sometimes  as  the  words  of  Scripture, 
sometimes  as  of  "  the  Apostle,"  sometimes  as  of  Paul, 
sometimes  as  of  the  Spirit.  Occasionally  it  is  expressly 
stated  that  the  words  quoted  are  addressed  to  Timothy 
or  to  Titus. 

It  would  take  us  too  far  afield  to  examine  in  detail 
the  various  considerations  which  have  induced  some 
eminent  critics  to  set  aside  this  strong  array  of  external 
evidence  and  reject  one  or  more  of  these  Epistles. 
They  fall  in  the  main  under  four  heads.  (l)  The  diffi- 
culty of  finding  a  place  for  these  letters  in  the  life  of 
St.  Paul  as  given  us  in  the  Acts  and  in  his  own 
writings.     (2)  The  large  amount  of  peculiar  phraseology 

carp,  iv ;  Theoph.  Autol,  III.,  xiv. ;  Iren.,  Hoer,,  III.  iii.  3,  4 ;  Euseb. 
H.  £".,  III.  XXV.,  2.,  xxvi.  4.,  xxxii.  8. 


GENUINENESS  OF  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES.       7 

not  found  in  any  other  Pauline  Epistles.  (3)  The  Church 
organization  indicated  in  these  letters  which  is  alleged 
to  be  of  a  later  date  than  St.  Paul's  time.  (4)  The 
erroneous  doctrines  and  practices  attacked,  which  are 
also  said  to  be  those  of  a  later  age.  To  most  of  these 
points  we  shall  have  to  return  on  some  future  occasion  : 
but  for  the  present  this  much  may  be  asserted  with 
confidence,  (i)  In  the  Acts  and  in  the  other  Epistles 
of  St.  Paul  the  Apostle's  life  is  left  incomplete.  There 
is  nothing  to  forbid  us  from  supposing  that  the  remain- 
ing portion  amounted  to  several  years,  during  which 
these  three  letters  were  written.  The  Second  Epistle 
to  Timothy  in  any  case  has  the  unique  interest  of 
being  the  last  extant  utterance  of  the  Apostle  St.  Paul. 
(2)  The  phraseology  which  is  peculiar  to  each  of  these 
Epistles  is  not  greater  in  amount  than  the  phraseology 
which  is  peculiar  to  the  Epistle  to  the  Galatians,  which 
even  Baur  admits  to  be  of  unquestionable  genuineness. 
The  peculiar  diction  which  is  common  to  all  three 
Epistles  is  well  accounted  for  by  the  peculiarity  of  the 
common  subject,  and  by  the  fact  that  these  letters  are 
separated  by  several  years  from  even  the  latest  among 
the  other  writings  of  St.  Paul.*  (3,  4)  There  is  good 
reason  for  believing  that  during  the  lifetime  of  St.  Paul 
the  organization  of  the  Church  corresponded  to  that 
which  is  sketched  in  these  letters,  and  that  errors  were 
already  in  existence  such  as  these  letters  denounce. 

Although  the  controversy  is  by  no  means  over,  two 
results  of  it  are  very  generally  accepted  as  practically 
certain,     (i)  The  three    Epistles   must   stand   or   fall 

*  "  The  wealth  and  mobility  of  the  Pauline  intellect.  .  .  must  not 
be  fettered  in  mode  of  teaching  or  expression  by  a  rule  taken  from  a 
number  of  older  epistles  arbitrarily  selected." — Bernhard  Weiss, 
Introduction  to  the  N.  T.,  i.  p.  410  (Hodder :  1887). 


INTRODUCTORY, 


together.  It  is  impossible  to  accept  two,  or  one,  or  any 
portion  of  one  of  them,  and  reject  the  rest.  (2)  They 
stand  or  fall  with  the  hypothesis  of  St.  Paul's  second 
imprisonment.  If  the  Apostle  was  imprisoned  at  Rome 
only  once,  and  was  put  to  death  at  the  end  of  that 
imprisonment,  then  these  three  letters  were  not  written 
by  him. 

(i)  The  Epistles  stand  or  fall  together:  they  are  all 
three  genuine,  or  all  three  spurious.  We  must  either 
with  the  scholars  of  the  Early  Church,  of  the  Middle 
Ages,  and  of  the  Renaissance,  whether  Roman  01 
Protestant,  and  with  a  clear  majority  of  modern  critics,* 
accept  all  three  letters ;  or  else  with  Marcion,  Basilides, 
Eichhorn,  Bauer,  and  their  followers,t  reject  all  three. 
As  Credner  himself  had  to  acknowledge,  after  having 
at  first  advocated  the  theory,  it  is  impossible  to  follow 
Tatian  in  retaining  Titus  as  apostolic,  while  repudiating 
the  other  two  as  forgeries.  Nor  have  the  two  scholars | 
who  originated  the  modern  controversy  found  more 
than  one  critic  of  eminence  to  accept  their  conclusion 
that  both  Titus  and  2  Timothy  are  genuine,  but  i 
Timothy  not.  Yet  another  suggestion  is  made  by 
Reuss,  that  2  Timothy  is  unquestionably  genuine, 
while  the  other  two  are  doubtful.  And  lastly  we  have 
Pfleiderer  admitting  that  2  Timothy  contains  at  least 
two  sections  which  have  with  good  reason  been  recog- 
nized as  genuine  (i.  15 — 18  and  iv.  9 — 21),  and  Renan 


*  Among  them  Alford,  Baumgarten,  Beck,  DoUinger,  Fairbairn, 
Farrar,  Gucricke,  Herzog,  Hofmann,  Hiither,  KoUing,  Lange,  Light- 
foot,  Neander,  Oosterzee,  Otto,  Plumptre,  Salmon,  Schaff,  Thiersch, 
Wace,  Wieseler,  Wiesinger,  Wordsworth. 

t  Among  them  Credner,  S.  Davidson,  Ewald,  Hausrath,  Hilgenfeld, 
Holtzmann,  Mangold,  Schenkel,  and  on  the  whole  De  Wette. 

%  Schmidt  and  Schleiermacher  followed  by  Bleek. 


GENUINENESS  OF  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES.       9 

asking  whether  the  forger  of  these  three  Epistles  did 
not  possess  some  authentic  letters  of  St.  Paul  which  he 
has  enshrined  in  his  composition.* 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  those  who  impugn  the 
authenticity  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  are  by  no  means 
agreed  among  themselves.  The  evidence  in  some 
places  is  so  strong,  that  many  of  the  objectors  are  com- 
pelled to  admit  that  the  Epistles  are  at  least  in  part 
the  work  of  St.  Paul.  That  is,  certain  portions,  which 
admit  of  being  severely  tested,  are  found  to  stand  the 
test,  and  are  passed  as  genuine,  in  spite  of  surrounding 
difficulties.  The  rest,  which  does  not  admit  of  such 
testing,  is  repudiated  on  account  of  the  difficulties.  No 
one  can  reasonably  object  to  the  application  of  whatever 
tests  are  available,  nor  to  the  demand  for  explanations 
of  difficulties.  But  we  must  not  treat  what  cannot  be 
satisfactorily  tested  as  if  it  had  been  tested  and  found 
wanting ;  nor  must  we  refuse  to  take  account  of  the 
support  which  those  parts  which  can  be  thoroughly 
sifted  lend  to  those  for  which  no  decisive  criterion  can 
be  found.  Still  less  must  we  proceed  on  the  assump- 
tion that  to  reject  these  Epistles  or  any  portion  of  them 
is  a  proceeding  which  gets  rid  of  difficulties.  It  is 
merely  an  exchange  of  one  set  of  difficulties  for  another. 
To  unbiassed  minds  it  will  perhaps  appear  that  the 
difficulties  involved  in  the  assumption  that  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  are  wholly  or  partly  a  forgery,  are  not  less 
serious  than  those  which  have  been  urged  against  the 
well-established  tradition  of  their  genuineness.  The 
very  strong  external  evidence  in  their  favour  has  to  be 


*  Similar  admissions,  which  are  quite  fatal  to  the  view  that  the 
three  Epistles  are  not  genuine,  are  made  by  Hausrath,  Immer  and 
Lemme  ;  while  Ewald,  Hitzig,  Krenkel,  and  Weisse  think  that  Titus 
contains  authentic  fragments.     See  the  exposition  of  2  Tim.  iv.  9  -21, 


10  INTRODUCTORY, 


accounted  for.  It  is  already  full,  clear,  and  decided, 
as  soon  as  we  could  at  all  expect  to  find  it,  viz., 
in  Irenaeus,  Clement  of  Alexandria,  and  Tertullian. 
And  it  must  be  noticed  that  these  witnesses  give  us  the 
traditional  beliefs  of  several  chief  centres  in  Christendom. 
Irenseus  speaks  with  full  knowledge  of  what  was 
accepted  in  Asia  Minor,  Rome,  and  Gaul;  Clement 
witnesses  for  Egypt,  and  Tertullian  for  North  Africa. 
And  although  the  absence  of  such  support  would  not 
have  caused  serious  perplexity,  their  direct  evidence  is 
very  materially  supported  by  passages  closely  parallel 
to  the  words  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  found  in  writers 
still  earlier  than  Irenaeus.  Renan  admits  the  relation- 
ship between  2  Timothy  and  the  Epistle  of  Clement  of 
Rome,  and  suggests  that  each  writer  has  borrowed 
from  a  common  source.  Pfleiderer  admits  that  the 
Epistle  of  Ignatius  to  Polycarp  ^'displays  striking 
points  of  contact  with  2  Timothy."  Bauer's  theory, 
that  all  three  letters  are  as  late  as  a.d.  150,  and  are  an 
attack  on  Marcion,  finds  little  suppprt  now.  But  we 
are  still  asked  to  believe  that  2  Timothy  was  forged  in 
the  reign  of  Trajan  (98 — 1 17)  and  the  other  two  Epistles 
in  the  reign  of  Hadrian  (117 — 138).  Is  it  credible  that 
a  forgery  perpetrated  a.d.  I20 — 135  would  in  less  than 
fifty  years  be  accepted  in  Asia  Minor,  Rome,  Gaul, 
Egypt,  and  North  Africa,  as  a  genuine  letter  of  the 
Apostle  St.  Paul  ?  And  yet  this  is  what  must  have 
happened  in  the  case  of  I  Timothy,  if  the  hypothesis 
just  stated  is  correct.  Nor  is  this  all,  Marcion,  as  we 
know,  rejected  all  three  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles ;  and 
Tertullian  cannot  think  why  Marcion  should  do  so. 
But,  when  Marcion  was  framing  his  canon,  about  the 
reign  of  Hadrian,  2  Timothy  according  to  these  dates, 
would  be   scarcely  twenty  years  old,  and  I  Timothy 


GET^ITINENESS  OP  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES,     n 

would  be  brand-new.  If  this  had  been  so,  would 
Marcion,  with  his  intimate  knowledge  of  St.  Paul's 
writings,  have  been  in  ignorance  of  the  fact ;  and  if  he 
had  known  it,  would  he  have  failed  to  denounce  the 
forgery  ?  Or  again,  if  we  assume  that  he  merely- 
treated  this  group  of  Epistles  with  silent  contempt, 
would  not  his  rejection  of  them,  which  was  well-known, 
have  directed  attention  to  them,  and  caused  their  recent 
origin  to  be  quickly  discovered  ?  From  all  which  it  is 
manifest  that  the  theory  of  forgery  by  no  means  frees 
us  from  grave  obstacles. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  external  evidence  is 
large  in  amount  and  overwhelmingly  in  favour  of  the 
Apostolic  authorship.  The  objections  are  based  on 
internal  evidence.  But  some  of  the  leading  opponents 
admit  that  even  the  internal  evidence  is  in  favour  of 
certain  portions  of  the  Epistles.  Let  us,  then,  with 
Renan,  Pfleiderer,  and  others  admit  that  parts  of 
2  Timothy  were  written  by  St.  Paul;  then  there  is 
strong  presumption  that  the  whole  letter  is  by  him ;  for 
even  the  suspected  portions  have  the  external  evidence 
in  their  favour,  together  with  the  support  lent  to  them 
by  those  parts  for  which  the  internal  evidence  is  also 
satisfactory.  Add  to  which  the  improbability  that  any 
one  would  store  up  genuine  letters  of  St.  Paul  for  fifty 
years  and  then  use  parts  of  them  to  give  substance  to 
a  fabrication.  Or  let  us  with  Reuss  contend  that  in 
2  Timothy  "  the  whole  Epistle  is  so  completely  the 
natural  expression  of  the  actual  situation  of  the  author, 
and  contains,  unsought  and  for  the  most  part  in  the 
form  of  mere  allusions,  such  a  mass  of  minute*  and 

*  What  forger  would  have  thought  of  the  cloak  (or  book-case)  left 
at  Troas  with  Carpus,  or  would  have  been  careful  to  speak  only  of 
"  the  house  of  Onesiohorus,"  and  not  of  himself,  in  two  places  ? 


li  INTR  OD  lie  TOR  V, 


unessential  particulars,  that  even  did  the  name  of  the 
writer  not  chance  to  be  mentioned  at  the  beginning  it 
would  be  easy  to  discover  it."  Then  there  is  strong 
presumption  that  the  other  two  letters  are  genuine 
also ;  for  they  have  the  external  evidence  on  their  side, 
together  with  the  good  character  reflected  upon  them  by 
their  brother  Epistle.  This  result  is  of  course  greatly 
strengthened,  if,  quite  independently  of  2  Timothy, 
the  claims  of  Titus  to  be  Apostolic  are  considered  to 
be  adequate.  With  two  of  the  three  letters  admitted 
to  be  genuine,  the  case  for  the  remaining  letter  becomes 
a  strong  one.  It  has  the  powerful  external  evidence  on 
its  side,  backed  up  by  the  support  lent  to  it  by  its 
two  more  manifestly  authentic  companions.  Thus 
far,  therefore,  we  may  agree  with  Baur:  ^*  The  three 
Epistles  are  so  much  alike  that  none  of  them  can  be 
separated  from  the  others;  and  from  this  circumstance 
the  identity  of  their  authorship  may  be  confidently 
inferred."*  But  when  he  asserts  that  whichever  of 
this  family  of  letters  be  examined  will  appear  as  the 
betrayer  of  his  brethren,  he  just  reverses  the  truth. 
Each  letter,  upon  examination,  lends  support  to  the 
other  two ;  "  and  a  threefold  cord  is  not  easily  broken." 
The  strongest  member  of  the  family  is  2  Timothy : 
the  external  evidence  in  its  favour  is  ample,  and  no 
Epistle  in  the  New  Testament  is  more  characteristic  of 
St.  Paul.  It  would  be  scarcely  less  reasonable  to  dis- 
pute 2  Corinthians.  And  if  2  Timothy  be  admitted, 
there  is  no  tenable  ground  for  excluding  the  other 
two. 

II.  But  not  only  do  the  three  Epistles  stand  or  fall 
together,  they  stand  or  fall  with  the  hypothesis  of  the 

*  Paul,  his  Life  and  Works,  Pt.  II.,  ch.  viil  Eng.  Trans.,  p.  105. 


GENUINENESS  OP  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES.     13 

release  and  second  imprisonment  of  the  Apostle.  The 
contention  that  no  place  can  be  found  for  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  in  the  narrative  of  the  Acts  is  valid;  but  it 
is  no  objection  to  the  authenticity  of  the  Epistles. 
The  conclusion  of  the  Acts  implies  that  the  end  of 
St.  Paul's  life  is  not  reached  in  the  narrative.  "He 
abode  two  whole  years  in  his  own  hired  dwelling," 
implies  that  after  that  time  ^a  change  took  place.  If 
that  change  was  his  death,  how  unnatural  not  to 
mention  it!  The  conclusion  is  closely  parallel  to 
that  of  St.  Luke's  Gospel;  and  we  might  almost  as 
reasonably  contend  that  "  they  were  continually  in  the 
temple,"  proves  that  they  were  never  "clothed  with 
power  from  on  high,"  because  they  were  told  to  "  tarry 
in  the  city  "  until  they  were  so  clothed,  as  contend  that 
"  abode  two  whole  years  in  his  own  hired  dwelling," 
proves  that  at  the  end  of  the  two  years  came  the  end 
of  St.  Paul's  life.  Let  us  grant  that  the  conclusion  of 
the  Acts  is  unexpectedly  abrupt,  and  that  this  abrupt- 
ness constitutes  a  difficulty.  Then  we  have  our  choice 
of  two  alternatives.  Either  the  two  years  of  imprison- 
ment were  followed  by  a  period  of  renewed  labour,  or 
they  were  cut  short  by  the  Apostle's  martyrdom.  Is  it 
not  more  easy  to  believe  that  the  writer  did  not  consider 
that  this  new  period  of  work,  which  would  have  filled 
many  chapters,  fell  within  the  scope  of  his  narrative, 
than  that  he  omitted  so  obvious  a  conclusion  as  St. 
Paul's  death,  for  which  a  single  verse  would  have 
sufficed  ?  But  let  us  admit  that  to  assert  that  St.  Paul 
was  released  at  the  end  of  two  years  is  to  maintain  a 
mere  hypothesis :  yet  to  assert  that  he  was  not  released 
is  equally  to  maintain  a  mere  hypothesis.  If  we 
exclude  the  Pastoral  Epistles,  Scripture  gives  no  means 
of  deciding  the  question,  and  whichever  alternative  we 


14  INTRODUCTORY. 


adopt  we  are  making  a  conjecture.  But  which  hypo- 
thesis has  most  evidence  on  its  side  ?  Certainly  the 
hypothesis  of  the  release,  (i)  The  Pastoral  Epistles, 
even  if  not  by  St.  Paul,  are  by  some  one  who  believed 
that  the  Apostle  did  a  good  deal  after  the  close  of  the 
Acts.  (2)  The  famous  passage  in  Clement  of  Rome 
{Cor.  V.)  tells  that  St.  Paul  "  won  the  noble  renown 
which  was  the  reward  of  his  faith,  having  taught 
righteousness  unto  the  whole  world,  and  having  reached 
the  furthest  bound  of  the  West  (to  ripfia  t?}?  Suo-eo)?)." 
This  probably  means  Spain;*  and  if  St.  Paul  ever 
went  to  Spain  as  he  hoped  to  do  (Rom.  xv.  24,  28),  it 
was  after  the  imprisonment  narrated  in  the  Acts. 
Clement  gives  us  the  tradition  in  Rome  (c.  a.d.  95). 

(3)  The  Muratorian  fragment  (c.  a.d.  170)  mentions 
the    ^'  departure   of    Paul   from   the   city    to    Spain." 

(4)  Eusebius  {H.E.,  II.  xxii.  2)  says  that  at  the  end 
of  the  two  years  of  imprisonment,  according  to  tradi- 
tion, the  Apostle  went  forth  again  upon  the  ministry 
of  preaching,  and  on  a  second  visit  to  the  city  ended 
his  career  by  martyrdom  under  Nero ;  and  that  during 
this  imprisonment  he  composed  the  Second  Epistle  to 
Timothy.  All  this  does  not  amount  to  proof;  but  it 
raises  the  hypothesis  of  the  release  to  a  high  degree  of 
probability.  Nothing  of  this  kind  can  be  urged  in 
favour  of  the  counter  hypothesis.  To  urge  the  impro- 
bability that  the  labours  of  these  last  few  years  of  St. 
Paul's  life  would  be  left  unrecorded  is  no  argument. 

(1)  They  are  partly  recorded  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles. 

(2)  The  entire  labours  of  most  of  the  Twelve  are  left 
unrecorded.  Even  of  St.  Paul's  life,  whole  years  are 
left  a  blank.     How  fragmentary  the  narrative  in  the 

♦  It  cannot  possibly  mean  Rome ;  least  of  all  in  a  document  written 
in  Rome.     Rome  was  a  centre,  not  a  frontier. 


GENUINENESS  OP  THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES.    I5 

Acts  must  be  is  proved  by  the  autobiography  in  2  Cor- 
inthians. That  we  have  very  scanty  notice  of  St.  Paul's 
doings  between  the  two  imprisonments  does  not  render 
the  existence  of  such  an  interval  at  all  doubtful. 

The  result  of  this  preliminary  discussion  seems  to 
show  that  the  objections  which  have  been  urged  against 
these  Epistles  are  not  such  as  to  compel  us  to  doubt 
that  in  studying  them  we  are  studying  the  last  writings 
of  the  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles.  If  any  doubts  still 
survive,  a  closer  examination  of  the  details  will,  it  is 
hoped,  tend  to  remove  rather  than  to  strengthen  them. 
When  we  have  completed  our  survey,  we  may  be  able 
to  add  our  testimony  to  those  who  through  many 
centuries  have  found  these  writings  a  source  of  Divine 
guidance,  warning,  and  encouragement,  especially  in 
ministerial  work.  The  experience  of  countless  numbers 
of  pastors  attests  the  wisdom  of  the  Church,  or  in 
other  words  the  good  Providence  of  God,  in  causing 
these  Epistles  to  be  included  among  the  sacred  Scrip- 
tures. 

"  It  is  an  established  fact,"  as  Bernhard  Weiss 
rightly  points  out  (Iiitroduction  to  the  New  Testament^ 
vol.  i.,  p.  410),  "  that  the  essential,  fundamental 
features  of  the  Pauline  doctrine  of  salvation  are  even 
in  their  specific  expression  reproduced  in  our  Epistles 
with  a  clearness  such  as  we  do  not  find  in  any  Pauline 
disciple,  excepting  perhaps  Luke  or  the  Roman  Clement." 
Whoever  composed  them  had  at  his  command,  not  only 
St.  Paul's  forms  of  doctrine  and  expression,  but  large 
funds  of  Apostolic  zeal  and  discretion,  such  as  have 
proved  capable  of  warming  the  hearts  and  guiding  the 
judgments  of  a  long  line  of  successors.  Those  who 
are  conscious  of  these  effects  upon  themselves  will 
probably  find  it  easier  to  believe  that  they  have  derived 


i6  tNTRODUCTORV. 

these  benefits  from  the  great  Apostle  himself,  rather 
than  from  one  who,  with  however  good  intentions, 
assumed  his  name  and  disguised  himself  in  his  mantle. 
Henceforward,  until  we  find  serious  reason  for  doubt, 
it  will  be  assumed  that  in  these  Epistles  we  have  the 
farewell  counsels  of  none  other  than  St.  Paul. 


THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 


CHAPTER    II. 

TIMOTHY   THE    BELOVED    DISCIPLE    OF  ST.    PAUL, 
HIS  LIFE  AND   CHARACTER. 

"Timothy,  my  true  child  in  faith." — I  Tim.  L  3, 
"Timothy,  my  beloved  child." — 2  Tim.  i.  2. 

IN  the  relation  of  St.  Paul  to  Timothy  we  have  one 
of  those  beautiful  friendships  between  an  older  and 
a  younger  man  which  are  commonly  so  helpful  to  both. 
It  is  in  such  cases,  rather  than  where  the  friends  are 
equals  in  age,  that  each  can  be  the  real  complement  of 
the  other.  Each  by  his  abundance  can  supply  the 
other's  want,  whereas  men  of  equal  age  would  have 
common  wants  and  common  supplies.  In  this  respect 
the  friendship  between  St.  Paul  and  Timothy  reminds 
us  of  that  between  St.  Peter  and  St.  John.  In  each 
case  the  friend  who  took  the  lead  was  much  older  than 
the  other ;  and  (what  is  less  in  harmony  with  ordinary 
experience)  in  each  case  it  was  the  older  friend  who 
had  the  impulse  and  the  enthusiasm,  the  younger  who 
had  the  reflectiveness  and  the  reserve.  These  latter 
qualities  are  perhaps  less  marked  in  St.  Timothy  than 
in  St.  John,  but  nevertheless  they  are  there,  and  they 
are  among  the  leading  traits  of  his  character.  St.  Paul 
leans  on  him  while  he  guides  him,  and  relies  upon  his 
thoughtfulness  and  circumspection  in  cases  requiring 
firmness,  delicacy,  and  tact.  Of  the  affection  wich 
which  he  regarded  Timothy  we  have  evidence  in  the 


20  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

whole  tone  of  the  two  letters  to  him.  In  the  sphere  of 
faith  Timothy  is  his  "  own  true  child "  (not  merely 
adopted,  still  less  supposititious),  and  his  *' beloved 
child."  St.  Paul  tells  the  Corinthians  that  as  the  best 
means  of  making  them  imitators  of  himself  he  has  sent 
unto  them  **  Timothy,  who  is  my  beloved  and  faithful 
child  in  the  Lord,  who  shall  put  you  in  remembrance 
of  my  ways  which  be  in  Christ,  even  as  I  teach  every- 
where in  every  Church"  (i  Cor.  iv.  17).  And  a  few 
years  later  he  tells  the  Philippians  that  he  hopes  to 
send  Timothy  shortly  unto  them,  that  he  may  know 
how  they  fare.  For  he  has  no  one  like  him,  who  will 
have  a  genuine  anxiety  about  their  welfare.  The  rest 
care  only  for  their  own  interests.  "  But  the  proof  of 
him  ye  know,  that,  as  a  child  a  father,  so  he  slaved 
with  me  for  the  Gospel "  (ii.  22).  Of  all  whom  he  ever 
converted  to  the  faith  Timothy  seems  to  have  been  to 
St.  Paul  the  disciple  who  was  most  beloved  and  most 
trusted.  Following  the  example  of  the  fourth  Evan- 
gehst,  Timothy  might  have  called  himself  "  The  disciple 
whom  Paul  loved."  He  shared  his  spiritual  father's 
outward  labours  and  most  intimate  thoughts.  He  was 
with  him  when  the  Apostle  could  not  or  would  not 
have  the  companionship  of  others.  He  was  sent  on 
the  most  delicate  and  confidential  missions.  He  had 
charge  of  the  most  important  congregations.  When 
the  Apostle  was  in  his  last  and  almost  lonely  imprison- 
ment it  was  Timothy  whom  he  summoned  to  console 
him  and  receive  his  last  injunctions. 

There  is  another  point  in  which  the  beloved  disciple 
of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  resembles  the  beloved  disciple 
of  the  Fourth  Gospel.  We  are  apt  to  think  of  both  of 
them  as  always  young.  Christian  art  nearly  invariably 
represents  St.  John  as  a  man  of  youthful  and  almost 


i.2.]        THE  BELOVED  DISCIPLE   OF  ST.   PAUL.  21 

feminine  appearance.  And,  although  in  Timothy's 
case,  painters  and  sculptors  have  not  done  much  to 
influence  our  imagination,  yet  the  picture  which  we 
form  for  ourselves  of  him  is  very  similar  to  that  which 
we  commonly  receive  of  St.  John.  With  strange  logic 
this  has  actually  been  made  an  argument  against  the 
authenticity  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles.  Myth,  we  are 
told,  has  given  to  this  Christian  Achilles  the  attributes 
of  eternal  youth.  Timothy  was  a  lad  of  about  fifteen 
when  St.  Paul  converted  him  at  Lystra,  in  or  near 
A.D.  45  ;  and  he  was  probably  not  yet  thirty-five  when 
St.  Paul  wrote  the  First  Epistle  to  him.  Even  if  he 
had  been  much  older  there  would  be  nothing  surprising 
in  the  tone  of  St.  Paul's  letters  to  him.  It  is  one  of  the 
commonest  experiences  to  find  elderly  parents  speaking 
of  their  middle-aged  children  as  if  they  were  still  boys 
and  girls.  This  trait,  as  being  so  entirely  natural, 
ought  to  count  as  a  touch  beyond  the  reach  of  a  forger 
rather  than  as  a  circumstance  that  ought  to  rouse  our 
suspicions,  in  the  letters  of  "  Paul  the  aged "  *  to  a 
friend  who  was  thirty  years  younger  than  himself. 

Once  more,  the  notices  of  Timothy  which  have  come 
down  to  us,  like  those  which  we  have  respecting  the 
beloved  disciple,  are  very  fragmentary ;  but  they  form 
a  beautiful  and  consistent  sketch  of  one  whose  full 
portrait  we  long  to  possess. 

Timothy  was  a  native,  possibly  of  Derbe,  but  more 
probably  of  the  neighbouring  town  of  Lystra,  where  he 
was  piously  brought  up  in  a  knowledge  of  the  Jewish 
Scriptures  by  his  grandmother  Lois  and  his  mother 
Eunice.     It  was  probably  during  St.  Paul's  first  visit  to 

*  "Paul  an  ambassador,  and  now  also  a  prisoner  of  Jesus  Christ" 
is  probably  right  in  Philemon ;  but  even  there  "  Paul  the  aged  "  would 
be  true. 


22  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOIHY. 

Lystra,  on  his  first  missionary  journey,  that  he  became 
the  boy's  spiritual  father,  by  converting  him  to  the 
Christian  faith.  It  was  at  Lystra  that  the  Apostle  was 
stoned  by  the  mob  and  dragged  outside  the  city  as 
dead :  and  there  is  no  improbability  in  the  suggestion 
that,  when  he  recovered  consciousness  and  re-entered 
the  town,  it  was  in  the  home  of  Timothy  that  he  found 
shelter.  In  any  case  Lystra  was  to  the  Apostle  a 
place  of  strangely  mixed  associations ;  the  brutality  of 
the  pagan  multitude  side  by  side  with  the  tender 
friendship  of  the  young  Timothy.  When  St.  Paul  on 
his  next  missionary  journey  again  visited  Lystra  he 
found  Timothy  already  enjoying  a  good  report  among 
the  Christians  of  that  place  and  of  Iconium  for  his 
zeal  and  devotion  during  the  six  or  seven  years  which 
had  elapsed  since  his  first  visit.  Perhaps  he  had  been 
engaged  in  missionary  work  in  both  places.  The 
voices  of  the  prophets  had  singled  him  out  as  one 
worthy  of  bearing  office  in  the  Church ;  and  the  Apostle, 
still  grieving  over  the  departure  of  Barnabas  with  John 
Mark,  recognized  in  him  one  who  with  Silas  could  fill 
the  double  vacancy.  The  conduct  of  the  Apostle  of  the 
Gentiles  on  this  occasion  has  sometimes  excited  sur- 
prise. Previously  to  the  ordination,  Paul,  the  great 
proclaimer  of  the  abrogation  of  the  Law  by  the  Gospel, 
circumcised  the  young  evangelist.  The  inconsistency 
is  more  apparent  than  real.  It  was  an  instance  of  his 
becoming  "  all  things  to  all  men  "  for  the  salvation  of 
souls,  and  of  his  sacrificing  his  own  convictions  in 
matters  that  were  not  essential,  rather  than  cause 
others  to  offend.  Timothy's  father  had  been  a  Gentile, 
and  the  son,  though  brought  up  in  his  mother's  faith, 
had  never  been  circumcised.  To  St.  Paul  circumcision 
was  a  worthless  rite.     The  question  was,  ^whether  it 


i.2j         THE  BELOVED  DISCIPLE   OF  ST.   PAUL.  23 

was  a  harmless  one.  This  depended  upon  circum- 
stances. If,  as  among  the  Galatians,  it  caused  people 
to  rely  upon  the  Law  and  neglect  the  Gospel,  it  was  a 
superstitious  obstacle  with  which  no  compromise  could 
be  made.  But  if  it  was  a  passport  whereby  preachers, 
who  would  otherwise  be  excluded,  might  gain  access  to 
Jewish  congregations,  then  it  was  not  only  a  harmless 
but  a  useful  ceremony.  In  the  synagogue  Timothy  as 
an  uncircumcised  Jew  would  have  been  an  intolerable 
abomination,  and  would  never  have  obtained  a  hearing. 
To  free  him  from  this  crippling  disadvantage,  St.  Paul 
subjected  him  to  a  rite  which  he  himself  knew  to  be 
obsolete.  Then  followed  the  ordination,  performed 
with  great  solemnity  by  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of 
all  the  elders  of  the  congregation :  and  the  newly 
ordained  Evangelist  forthwith  set  out  to  accompany 
Paul  and  Silas  in  their  labours  for  the  Gospel. 
Wherever  they  went  they  distributed  copies  of  the 
decrees  of  the  Apostolic  Council  at  Jerusalem,  which 
declared  circumcision  to  be  unnecessary  for  Gentiles. 
Their  true  position  with  regard  to  circumcision  was 
thus  made  abundantly  evident.  For  the  sake  of  others 
they  had  abstained  from  availing  themselves  of  the  very 
liberty  which  they  proclaimed. 

In  the  Troad  they  met  Luke  the  beloved  physician 
(as  indicated  by  the  sudden  use  of  the  first  person 
plural  in  the  Acts),  and  took  him  on  with  them  to 
Philippi.  Here  probably,  as  certainly  afterwards  at 
Beroea,  Timothy  was  left  behind  by  Paul  and  Silas  to 
consolidate  their  work.  He  rejoined  the  Apostle  at 
Athens,  but  was  thence  sent  back  on  a  mission  to 
Thessalonica,  and  on  his  return  found  St.  Paul  at 
Corinth.  The  two  Epistles  written  from  Corinth  to 
the  Thessalonians  are  in  the  joint  names  of  Paul  and 


^4  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

Timothy.  At  Corinth,  as  at  Lystra,  Iconium,  and 
Philippi,  Timothy  became  prominent  for  his  zeal  as  an 
evangcHst ;  and  then  for  about  five  years  we  lose  sight 
of  him.  We  may  think  of  him  as  generally  at  the  side 
of  St.  Paul,  and  as  always  working  with  him ;  but  of 
the  details  of  the  work  we  are  ignorant.  About  a.d. 
57  he  was  sent  by  St.  Paul  on  a  delicate  mission  to 
Corinth.  This  was  before  I  Corinthians  was  written  ; 
for  in  that  letter  St.  Paul  states  that  he  has  sent 
Timothy  to  Corinth,  but  writes  as  if  he  expected  that 
the  letter  would  reach  Corinth  before  him.  He  charges 
the  Corinthians  not  to  aggravate  the  young  evangelist's 
natural  timidity,  and  not  to  let  his  youth  prejudice 
them  against  him.  When  St.  Paul  wrote  2  Corinthians 
from  Macedonia  later  in  the  year,  Timothy  was  again 
with  him,  for  his  name  is  coupled  with  Paul's :  and  he 
is  still  with  him  when  the  Apostle  wrote  to  the  Romans 
from  Corinth,  for  he  joins  in  sending  salutations  to  the 
Roman  Christians.  We  find  him  still  at  St.  Paul's 
side  on  his  way  back  to  Jerusalem  through  Philippi, 
the  Troad,  Tyre,  and  Csesarea.  And  here  we  once 
more  lose  trace  of  him  for  some  years.  We  do  not 
know  what  he  was  doing  during  St.  Paul's  two  years' 
imprisonment  at  Caesarea  ;  but  he  joined  him  during 
the  first  imprisonment  at  Rome,  for  the  Epistles  to  the 
Philippians,  the  Colossians,  and  Philemon  are  written 
in  the  names  of  Paul  and  Timothy.  From  the  passage 
already  quoted  from  Philippians  we  may  conjecture 
that  Timothy  went  to  Philippi  and  returned  again 
before  the  Apostle  was  released.  At  the  close  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  we  read,  *^  Know  ye  that  our 
brother  Timothy  hath  been  set  at  liberty."  It  is 
possible  that  the  imprisonment  to  which  this  notice 
refers  was  contemporaneous  with  the  first  imprisonn.ent 


1  2. J         THE  BELOVED  DISCIPLE   OF  ST.  PAUL.  25 

of  St.  Paul,  and  that  it  is  again  referred  to  in  I  Timothy 
(vi.  12)  as  "  the  good  confession  "  which  he  "confessed 
in  the  sight  of  many  witnesses." 

The  few  additional  facts  respecting  Timothy  are 
given  us  in  the  two  letters  to  him.  Some  time  after 
St.  Paul's  release  the  two  were  together  in  Ephesus ; 
and  when  the  Apostle  went  on  into  Macedonia  he  left 
his  companion  behind  him  to  warn  and  exhort  certain 
holders  of  erroneous  doctrine  to  desist  from  teaching 
it.  There  were  tears,  on  the  younger  friend's  side  at 
any  rate,  to  which  St.  Paul  alludes  at  the  opening  of 
the  Second  Epistle ;  and  they  were  natural  enough. 
The  task  imposed  upon  Timothy  was  no  easy  one ;  and 
after  the  dangers  and  sufferings  to  which  the  Apostle 
had  been  exposed,  and  which  his  increasing  infirmities 
continually  augmented,  it  was  only  too  possible  that 
the  friends  would  never  meet  again.  So  far  as  we 
know,  these  gloomy  apprehensions  may  have  been 
reaUzed.  In  his  first  letter,  written  from  Macedonia, 
St.  Paul  expresses  a  hope  of  returning  very  soon  to 
Timothy;  but,  like  some  other  hopes  expressed  in  St. 
Paul's  Epistles,  it  was  perhaps  never  fulfilled.  The 
second  letter,  written  from  Rome,  contains  no  allusion 
to  any  intermediate  meeting.  In  this  second  letter  he 
twice  im.plores  Timothy  to  do  all  he  can  to  come  to  him 
without  delay,  for  he  is  left  almost  alone  in  his  imprison- 
ment. But  whether  Timothy  was  able  to  comply  with 
this  wish  we  have  no  means  of  knowing.  We  like  to 
think  of  the  beloved  disciple  as  comforting  the  last 
hours  of  his  master ;  but,  although  the  conjecture  may 
be  a  right  one,  we  must  remember  that  it  is  conjecture 
and  no  more.  With  the  Second  Epistle  to  him  ends 
all  that  we  really  know  of  Timothy.  Tradition  and 
ingenious  guesswork  add  a  little  more  which  can   be 


26  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

neither  proved  nor  disproved.  More  than  two  hundred 
years  after  his  death,  Eusebius  tells  us  that  he  is 
related  to  have  held  the  office  of  overseer  of  the  diocese 
of  Ephesus ;  and  five  centuries  later  Nicephorus  tells 
us,  that  he  was  beaten  to  death  by  the  Ephesian  mob 
for  protesting  against  the  licentiousness  of  their  worship 
of  Artemis.  It  has  been  conjectured  that  Timothy  may 
be  the  ^' Angel"  of  the  Church  of  Ephesus,  who  is 
partly  praised  and  partly  blamed  in  the  Apocalypse,  and 
parallels  have  been  drawn  between  the  words  of  blame 
in  Rev.  ii.  4,  5,  and  the  uneasiness  which  seems  to 
underlie  one  or  two  passages  in  the  Second  Epistle  to 
Timothy.  But  the  resemblances  are  too  slight  to  be 
relied  upon.  All  we  can  say  is,  that  even  if  the  later 
date  be  taken  for  the  Apocalypse,  Timothy  may  have 
been  overseer  of  the  Church  of  Ephesus  at  the  time 
when  the  book  was  written. 

But  of  all  the  scattered  memorials  that  have  come 
down  to  us  respecting  this  beautiful  friendship  between 
the  great  Apostle  and  his  chief  disciple,  the  two  letters 
of  the  older  friend  to  the  younger  are  by  far  the  chief. 
And  there  is  so  much  in  them  that  fits  with  exquisite 
nicety  into  the  known  conditions  of  the  case,  that  it  is 
hard  to  imagine  how  any  forger  of  the  second  century 
could  so  have  thrown  himself  into  the  situation.  Where 
else  in  that  age  have  we  evidence  of  any  such  literary 
and  historical  skill  ?  The  tenderness  and  affection,  the 
anxiety  and  sadness,  the  tact  and  discretion,  the  strength 
and  large-mindedness  of  St.  Paul  are  all  there ;  and 
his  relation  to  his  younger  but  much-trusted  disciple 
is  quite  naturally  sustained  throughout.  Against  this  it 
is  not  much  to  urge  that  there  are  some  forty  words 
and  phrases  in  these  Epistles  which  do  not  occur  in  the 
other  Epistles  of  St.  Paul.     The  explanation  of  that  fact 


i.2.]        THE  BELOVED  DISCIPLE  OF  ST.  PAUL.  27 

is  easy.  Partly  they  are  words  which  in  his  other 
Epistles  he  had  no  need  to  use  ;  partly  they  are  words 
which  the  circumstances  of  these  later  letters  suggested 
to  him,  and  which  those  of  the  earlier  letters  did  not. 
The  vocabulary  of  every  man  of  active  mind  who  reads 
and  mixes  with  other  men,  especially  if  he  travels  much, 
is  perpetually  changing.  He  comes  across  new  meta- 
phors, new  figures  of  speech,  remembers  them,  and 
uses  them.  The  reading  of  such  a  work  as  Darwin's 
Origin  of  Species  gives  a  man  command  of  a  new 
sphere  of  thought  and  expression.  The  conversation 
of  such  a  man  as  "  Luke  the  beloved  physician  "  would 
have  a  similar  effect  on  St.  Paul.  We  shall  never  know 
the  minds  or  the  circumstances  which  suggested  to  him 
the  language  which  has  now  become  our  own  posses- 
sion; and  it  is  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  the  process 
of  assimilation  came  to  a  dead  stop  in  the  Apostle's 
mind  when  he  finished  the  Epistles  of  the  first  imprison- 
ment. The  result,  therefore,  of  this  brief  survey  of  the 
life  of  Timothy  is  to  confirm  rather  than  to  shake  our 
belief  that  the  letters  which  are  addressed  to  him  were 
really  written  by  his  friend  St.  Paul. 

The  friendship  between  these  two  men  of  different 
gifts  and  very  different  ages  is  full  of  interest.  It  is 
difficult  to  estimate  which  of  the  two  friends  gained 
most  from  the  affection  and  devotion  of  the  other.  No 
doubt  Timothy's  debt  to  St.  Paul  was  immense  :  and 
which  of  us  would  not  think  himself  amply  paid  for  any 
amount  of  service  and  sacrifice,  in  having  the  privilege 
of  being  the  chosen  friend  of  such  a  man  as  St.  Paul  ? 
But  on  the  other  hand,  few  men  could  have  supplied 
the  Apostle's  peculiar  needs  as  Timothy  did.  That 
intense  craving  for  sympathy  which  breathes  so  strongly 
throughout  the  writings  of  St.  Paul,  found   its  chief 


28  THK  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

human  satisfaction  in  Timothy.  To  be  alone  in  a 
crcwd  is  a  trial  to  most  men  ;  and  few  men  have  felt 
the  oppressiveness  of  it  more  keenly  than  St.  Paul.  To 
have  some  one,  therefore,  v^^ho  loved  and  reverenced 
him,  who  knew  his  *'  ways  "  and  could  impress  them  on 
others,  who  cared  for  those  for  whom  Paul  cared  and 
was  ever  willing  to  minister  to  them  as  his  friend's 
missioner  and  delegate — all  this  and  much  more  was 
inexpressibly  comforting  to  St.  Paul:  It  gave  him 
strength  in  his  weaknesses,  hope  in  his  many  disap- 
pointments, and  solid  help  in  his  daily  burden  of 
^'  anxiety  for  all  the  Churches."  Specially  consoling 
was  the  clinging  affection  of  his  young  friend  at  those 
times  when  the  Apostle  was  suffering  from  the  coldness 
and  neglect  of  others.  At  the  time  of  his  first  imprison- 
ment the  respect  or  curiosity  of  the  Roman  Christians 
had  moved  many  of  them  to  come  out  thirty  miles  to 
meet  him  on  his  journey  from  Caesarea  to  Rome ;  yet 
as  soon  as  he  was  safely  lodged  in  the  house  of  his 
gaoler  they  almost  ceased  to  minister  to  him.  But  the 
faithful  disciple  seems  to  have  been  ever  at  his  side. 
And  when  the  Romans  treated  Paul  with  similar  indif- 
ference during  his  second  imprisonment,  it  was  this 
same  disciple  that  he  earnestly  besought  to  come  with 
all  speed  to  comfort  him.  It  w^as  not  merely  that  he 
loved  and  trusted  Timothy  as  one  upon  whose  devotion 
and  discretion  he  could  always  rely  :  but  Timothy  was 
the  one  among  his  many  disciples  who  had  sacrificed 
everything  for  St.  Paul  and  his  Master.  He  had  left  a 
loving  mother  and  a  pleasant  home  in  order  to  share 
with  the  Apostle  a  task  which  involved  ceaseless  labour, 
untold  anxiety,  not  a  little  shame  and  obloquy,  and  at 
times  even  danger  to  life  and  limb.  When  he  might 
have  continued  to  live  on  as  the  favourite  of  his  family. 


1.2.]        THE  BELOVED  DISCIPLE  OF  ST.  PAUL,  29 

enjoying  the  respect  of  the  presbyters  and  prophets  of 
Lycaonia,  he  chose  to  wander  abroad  with  the  man  to 
whom,  humanly  speaking,  he  owed  his  salvation,  'Mn 
journeyings  often,"  in  perils  of  every  kind  from  the 
powers  of  nature,  and  from  the  violence  or  treachery 
of  man,  and  in  all  those  countless  afQictions  and  neces- 
sities, of  which  St.  Paul  gives  us  such  a  touching  sum- 
mary in  the  second  letter  to  the  Corinthians.  All  this 
St.  Paul  knew,  and  he  knew  the  value  of  it  to  himself 
and  the  Church ;  and  hence  the  warm  affection  with 
which  the  Apostle  always  speaks  of  him  and  to  him. 

But  what  did  not  Timothy  owe  to  his  friend,  his 
father  in  the  faith,  old  enough  to  be  his  father  in  the 
flesh  ?  Not  merely  his  conversion  and  his  building 
up  in  Christian  doctrine,  though  that  was  much,  and 
the  chief  item  of  his  debt.  But  St.  Paul  had  tenderly 
watched  over  him  among  the  difficulties  to  which  a 
person  of  his  temperament  would  be  specially  exposed. 
Timothy  was  young,  enthusiastic,  sensitive,  and  at 
times  showed  signs  of  timidity.  If  his  enthusiasm  were 
not  met  with  a  generous  sympathy,  there  was  danger 
lest  the  sensitive  nature  would  shrivel  up  on  contact 
with  an  unfeehng  world,  and  the  enthusiasm  driven  in 
upon  itself  w^ould  be  soured  into  a  resentful  cynicism. 
St.  Paul  not  only  himself  gave  to  his  young  disciple  the 
sympathy  that  he  needed  ;  he  encouraged  others  also 
to  do  the  same.  *'  Now  if  Timothy  come,"  he  writes  to 
the  Corinthians,  ''  see  that  he  be  with  you  without  fear; 
for  he  worketh  the  work  of  the  Lord,  as  I  also  do  :  let 
no  man  therefore  despise  him."  He  warned  these 
factious  and  fastidious  Greeks  against  chilling  the 
generous  impulses  of  a  youthful  evangelist  by  their 
sarcastic  criticisms.  Timothy  might  be  wanting  in  the 
brilliant  gifts  which  Corinthians  adored :  in  knowledge 


30  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

of  the  world,  in  address,  in  oratory.  But  he  was  real. 
He  was  working  God's  work  with  a  single  heart  and 
with  genuine  fervour.  It  would  be  a  cruel  thing  to  mar 
that  simplicity  or  quench  that  fervour,  and  thus  turn  a 
genuine  enthusiast  into  a  cold-blooded  man  of  the 
world.  On  their  treatment  of  him  might  depend 
whether  he  raised  them  to  his  own  zeal  for  Christ,  or 
they  dragged  him  down  to  the  level  of  their  own 
paralysing  superciliousness. 

The  dangers  from  which  St.  Paul  thus  generously 
endeavoured  to  shield  Timothy,  are  those  which  beset 
many  an  ardent  spirit,  especially  in  England  at  the 
present  day.  Everywhere  there  is  a  cynical  disbelief  in 
human  nature  and  a  cold  contempt  for  all  noble  im- 
pulses, which  throw  a  damp  and  chilling  atmosphere 
over  society.  At  school  and  at  the  university,  in 
family  Hfe  and  in  domestic  service,  young  men  and 
young  women  are  encouraged  to  believe  that  there  is 
no  such  thing  as  unselfishness  or  holiness,  and  that 
enthusiasm  is  always  either  silly  or  hypocritical.  By 
sarcastic  jests  and  contemptuous  smiles  they  are  taught 
the  fatal  lesson  of  speaking  slightingly,  and  at  last  of 
thinking  slightingly,  of  their  own  best  feelings.  To  be 
dutiful  and  affectionate  is  supposed  to  be  childish, 
while  reverence  and  trust  are  regarded  as  mere  ignor- 
ance of  the  world.  The  mischief  is  a  grave  one,  for  it 
poisons  life  at  its  very  springs.  Every  young  man 
and  woman  at  times  has  aspirations  which  at  first  are 
only  romantic  and  sentimental,  and  as  such  are  neither 
right  nor  wrong.  But  they  are  nature's  material  for 
higher  and  better  things.  They  are  capable  of  being 
developed  into  a  zeal  for  God  and  for  man,  such  as  will 
ennoble  the  characters  of  all  who  come  under  its 
influence.     The  sentimentalist  may  become  an  enthu- 


i.2.]        THE  BELOVED  DISCIPLE   OF  ST.  PAUL.  3! 

siast,  and  the  enthusiast  a  hero  or  a  saint.  Woe  to 
him  who  gives  to  such  precious  material  a  wrong  turn, 
and  by  offering  cynicism  instead  of  sympathy  turns  all 
its  freshness  sour.  The  loss  does  not  end  with  the 
blight  of  an  exuberant  and  earnest  character.  There 
are  huge  masses  of  evil  in  the  world,  which  seem  to 
defy  the  good  influences  that  from  time  to  time  are 
brought  to  bear  upon  them.  Humanly  speaking,  there 
seems  to  be  only  one  hope  of  overcoming  these  strong- 
holds of  Satan, — and  that  is  by  the  combined  efforts  of 
many  enthusiasts.  *'  This  is  the  victory  which  over- 
cometh  the  world,  even  our  faith."  It  will  be  a  grievous 
prospect  for  mankind,  if  faith  in  God,  in  ourselves,  and 
in  our  fellow-men  becomes  so  unfashionable  as  to  be 
impossible.  And  this  is  the  faith  which  makes  enthu- 
siasts. If  we  have  not  this  faith  ourselves,  we  can  at 
least  respect  it  in  others.  If  we  cannot  play  the  part 
of  Timothy,  and  go  forth  with  glowing  hearts  to  what- 
ever difficult  and  distasteful  work  may  be  placed  before 
us,  we  can  at  least  avoid  chilling  and  disheartening 
others  ;  and  sometimes  at  least  we  may  so  far  follow  in 
the  footsteps  of  St.  Paul  as  to  protect  from  the  world's 
cynicism  those  who,  with  hearts  more  warm  perhaps 
than  wise,  are  labouring  manfully  to  leave  the  world 
purer  and  happier  than  they  found  it. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE    DOCTRINE    CONDEMNED     IN    THE    PASTORAL 

EPISTLES  A  JEWISH  FORM  OF  GNOSTICISM.— THE 
GNOSTICS  PROBLEM. 

"  As  I  exhorted  thee  to  tarry  at  Ephesus,  when  I  was  going  into 
Macedonia,  that  thou  mightest  charge  certain  men  not  to  teach  a 
different  doctrine,  neither  to  give  heed  to  fables  and  endless  genealo- 
gies, the  which  minister  questionings,  rather  than  a  dispensation  of 
God  which  is  in  faith  ;  so  do  I  now  " — I  Tim.  i.  2,  3. 

THIS  Epistle  falls  into  two  main  divisions,  of  which 
the  first  continues  down  to  the  13  th  verse  of 
chap.  iii.  It  treats  of  three  different  subjects  :  Chris- 
tian doctrine ;  Christian  worship ;  and  the  Christian 
ministry.  The  first  of  these  three  subjects  is  intro- 
duced in  the  words  of  the  text,  which  in  the  original 
form  an  incomplete  sentence.  The  last  four  words, 
"  so  do  I  now,"  are  not  expressed  in  the  Greek.  But 
something  must  be  supplied  to  complete  the  sense  ;  and 
it  is  more  natural  to  understand  with  the  Revisers  "  So 
do  I  now  exhort  thee,"  than  with  the  A.  V.  *'  So  do 
thou  tarry  at  Ephesus."  But  the  question  is  not  of 
great  moment  and  cannot  be  decided  with  absolute 
certainty.  It  is  of  more  importance  to  enquire  what 
was  the  nature  of  the  "  different  doctrine "  which 
Timothy  was  to  endeavour  to  counteract.  And  on  this 
point  we  are  not  left  in  serious  doubt.  There  are 
various  expressions  used  respecting  it  in  these  two 
letters  to  Timothy  which  seem  to  point  to  two  factors 


1.2,3.]  THE  GNOSTIC'S  PROBLEM.  33 

in  the  heterodoxy  about  which  St.  Paul  is  anxious. 
It  is  clear  that  the  error  is  Jewish  in  origin ;  and  it  is 
almost  equally  clear  that  it  is  Gnostic  as  well.  The 
evidence  of  the  letter  to  Titus  tends  materially  to  confirm 
these  conclusions. 

(i)  The  heresy  is  Jewish  in  character.  Its  promoters 
"  desire  to  be  teachers  of  the  Law  "  (ver.  7).  Some  of 
them  are  ^'they  of  the  circumcision"  (Tit.  i.  lo).  It 
consists  in  '* Jewish  fables"  (Tit.  i.  14).  The  ques- 
tions which  it  raises  are  "fightings  about  the  Law*' 
(Tit.  iii.  9). 

(2)  Its  Gnostic  character  is  also  indicated.  We  are 
told  both  in  the  text  and  in  the  Epistle  to  Titus  (i.  14 ; 
iii.  9)  that  it  deals  in  "  fables  and  genealogies."  It  is 
"empty  talking"  (ver.  6),  "disputes  of  words"  (vi.  4), 
and  "  profane  babblings  "  (vi.  20).  It  teaches  an  un- 
scriptural  and  unnatural  asceticism  (iv.  3,  8).  It  is 
"  Gnosis  falsely  so  called  "  (vi.  20). 

A  heresy  containing  these  two  elements,  Judaism  and 
Gnosticism,  meets  us  both  before  and  after  the  period 
covered  by  the  Pastoral  Epistles  :  before  in  the  Epistle 
to  the  Colossians  ;  afterwards  in  the  Epistles  of  Igna- 
tius. The  evidence  gathered  from  these  three  sources 
is  entirely  in  harmony  with  what  we  learn  elsewhere — 
that  the  earliest  forms  of  Christian  Gnosticism  were 
Jev\ish  in  character.  It  will  be  observed  that  this  is 
indirect  confirmation  of  the  genuineness  of  the  Pastoral 
Epistles.  The  Gnosticism  condemned  in  them  is 
Jewish  ;  and  any  form  of  Gnosticism  that  was  in 
existence  in  St.  Paul's  time  would  almost  certainly  be 
Jewish.* 

*  F.  C,  Baur   himself  contends  that  the  false  teachers  here  con- 
demned are  "  Judaizing  Gnostics,  who  put  forth  their  figurative  inter- 

3 


34  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

Professor  Godet  has  pointed  out  how  entirely  the 
relation  of  Judaism  to  Christianity  which  is  implied  in 
these  Epistles,  fits  in  with  their  being  the  last  group  of 
Epistles  written  by  St.  Paul.  At  first,  Judaism  was 
entirely  outside  the  Church,  opposing  and  blaspheming. 
Then  it  entered  the  Church  and  tried  to  make  the 
Church  Jewish,  by  foisting  the  Mosaic  Law  upon  it. 
Lastly,  it  becomes  a  fantastic  heresy  inside  the  Church, 
and  sinks  into  profane  frivolity.  "  Pretended  revela- 
tions are  given  as  to  the  names  and  genealogies  of 
angels ;  absurd  ascetic  rules  are  laid  down  as  counsels 
of  perfection,  while  daring  immorality  defaces  the 
actual  life."  *  This  is  the  phase  which  is  confronted  in 
the  Pastoral  Epistles :  and  St.  Paul  meets  it  with  a 
simple  appeal  to  faith  and  morality. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  the  '*  fables,"  or  *'  myths," 
and  '^ genealogies"  ought  to  be  transferred  from  the 
Gnostic  to  the  Jewish  side  of  the  account.  And  thus 
Chrysostom  interprets  the  passage.  "  By  fables  he 
does  not  mean  the  Law ;  far  from  it ;  but  inventions 
and  forgeries,  and  counterfeit  doctrines.  For,  it  seems, 
the  Jews  wasted  their  whole  discourse  on  these  un- 
profitable points.  They  numbered  up  their  fathers  and 
grandfathers,  that  they  might  have  the  reputation  of 
historical  knowledge  and  research."  The  "  fables " 
then,  may  be  understood  to  be  those  numerous  legends 
which  the  Jews  added  to  the  Old  Testament,  specimens 
of  which  abound  in  the  Talmud.  But  similar  myths 
abound  in  Gnostic  systems,  and  therefore  *^  fables  "  may 
represent  both  elements  of  the  heterodox  teaching.     So 

pretation  of  the  Law  as  true  knowledge  of  the  Law.     Such  were  the 
earlier  Gnostics,  such   as  the  Ophites  and  Saturninus"  {Proiesiant 
Commentary,  note  on  i  Tim.  i.  7). 
*  Expositor,  July,  1888,  p.  42. 


i.2,3.]  THE   GNOSTIC'S  PROBLEM.  35 

also  with  the  "  endless  genealogies."  These  cannot 
well  refer  to  the  genealogies  in  Genesis,  for  they  are 
not  endless,  each  of  them  being  arranged  in  tens.  But 
it  is  quite  possible  that  Jewish  speculations  about  the 
genealogies  of  angels  may  be  meant.  Such  things, 
being  purely  imaginary,  would  be  endless.  Or  the 
Gnostic  doctrine  of  emanations,  in  its  earlier  and  cruder 
forms,  may  be  intended.  By  genealogies  in  this  sense 
early  thinkers,  especially  in  the  East,  tried  to  bridge 
the  chasm  between  the  Infinite  and  the  Finite,  between 
God  and  creation.  In  various  systems  it  is  assumed 
that  matter  is  inherently  evil.  The  material  universe 
has  been  from  the  beginning  not  '*  very  good  "  but  very 
bad.  How  then  can  it  be  believed  that  the  Supreme 
Being,  infinite  in  goodness,  would  create  such  a  thing  ? 
This  is  incredible  :  the  world  must  be  the  creature  of 
some  inferior  and  perhaps  evil  being.  But  when  this 
was  conceded,  the  distance  between  this  inferior  power 
and  the  supreme  God  still  remained  to  be  bridged. 
This,  it  was  supposed,  might  be  done  by  an  indefinite 
number  of  generations,  each  lower  in  dignity  than  the 
preceding  one,  until  at  last  a  being  capable  of  creating 
the  universe  was  found.  From  the  Supreme  God 
emanated  an  inferior  deity,  and  from  this  lower  power 
a  third  still  more  inferior ;  and  so  on,  until  the  Creator 
of  the  world  was  reached.  These  ideas  are  found  in 
the  Jewish  philosopher  Philo ;  and  it  is  to  these  that 
St.  Paul  probably  alludes  in  the  ''endless  genealogies 
which  minister  questionings  rather  than  a  dispensation 
of  God."  The  idea  that  matter  is  evil  dominates  the 
whole  philosophy  of  Philo.  He  endeavoured  to  recon- 
cile this  with  the  Old  Testament,  by  supposing  that 
matter  is  eternal ;  and  that  it  was  out  of  pre-existing 
material  that  God,  acting  through  His  creative  powers, 


36  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 


made  the  world  which  He  pronounced  to  be  "very 
good."  These  powers  are  sometimes  regarded  as  the 
angels,  sometimes  as  existences  scarcely  personal. 
But  they  have  no  existence  apart  from  their  source, 
any  more  than  a  ray  apart  from  the  sun.  They  are 
now  the  instruments  of  God's  Providence,  as  formerly 
of  His  creative  power. 

St.  Paul  condemns  such  speculations  on  four  grounds, 
(l)  They  are  fables^  myths,  mere  imaginings  of  the 
human  intellect  in  its  attempt  to  account  for  the  origin 
of  the  world  and  the  origin  of  evil.  (2)  They  are 
endless  and  interminable.  From  the  nature  of  things 
there  is  no  limit  to  mere  guesswork  of  this  kind. 
Every  new  speculator  may  invent  a  fresh  genealogy  of 
emanations  in  his  theory  of  creation,  and  may  make  it 
any  length  that  he  pleases.  If  hypotheses  need  never 
be  verified,— need  not  even  be  capable  of  verification, — 
one  may  go  on  constructing  them  ad  infinitum.  (3)  As 
a  natural  consequence  of  this  {(iLTive<;)  they  minister 
questionings  and  nothing  hetter.  It  is  all  barren  specu- 
lation and  fruitless  controversy.  Where  any  one  may 
assert  without  proof,  any  one  else  may  contradict 
without  proof;  and  nothing  comes  of  this  see-saw  of 
affirmation  and  negation.  (4)  Lastly,  these  vain  im- 
aginings are  a  dif event  doctrine.  They  are  not  only 
empty  but  untrue,  and  are  a  hindrance  to  the  truth. 
They  occupy  the  ground  which  ought  to  be  filled  with 
the  dispensation  of  God  which  is  in  faith.  Human  minds 
are  limited  in  their  capacity,  and,  even  if  these  empty 
hypotheses  were  innocent,  minds  that  were  filled  with 
them  would  have  little  room  left  for  the  truth.  But 
they  are  not  innocent  :  and  those  who  are  attracted  by 
them  become  disaffected  towards  the  truth.  It  is  im- 
possible to  love  both,  foi   the  two  are  opposed  to  one 


i.  2,3-]  THE  GNOSTIC'S  PROBLEM,  37 

another.  These  fables  are  baseless ;  they  have  no 
foundation  either  in  revelation  or  in  human  life.  More- 
over they  are  vague,  shifting,  and  incoherent.  They 
ramble  on  without  end.  But  the  Gospel  is  based  on  a 
Divine  Revelation,  tested  by  human  experience.  It  is 
an  economy,  a  system,  an  organic  whole,  a  dispensation 
of  means  to  ends.  Its  sphere  is  not  unbridled  imagina- 
tion or  audacious  curiosity,  but  faith. 
.  The  history  of  the  next  hundred  and  fifty  years 
amply  justifies  the  anxiety  and  severity  of  St.  Paul. 
The  germs  of  Gnostic  error,  which  were  in  the  air 
when  Christianity  was  first  preached,  fructified  with 
amazing  rapidity.  It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  parallel 
in  the  history  of  philosophy  to  the  speed  with  which 
Gnostic  views  spread  in  and  around  Christendom 
between  a.d.  70  and  220.  Eusebius  tells  us  that,  as 
soon  as  the  Apostles  and  those  who  had  listened 
"  with  their  own  ears  to  their  inspired  wisdom  had 
passed  away,  then  the  conspiracy  of  godless  error  took 
its  rise  through  the  deceit  of  false  teachers,  who  (now 
that  none  of  the  Apostles  was  any  longer  left)  hence- 
forth endeavoured  with  brazen  face  to  preach  their 
knowledge  falsely  so  called  in  opposition  to  the  preach- 
ing of  the  truth."*  Throughout  the  Christian  world, 
and  especially  in  intellectual  centres  such  as  Ephesus, 
Alexandria  and  Rome,  there  was*  perhaps  not  a  single 
educated  congregation  which  did  not  contain  persons 
who  were  infected  with  some  form  of  Gnosticism. 
Jerome's  famous  hyperbole  respecting  Arianism  might 
be  transferred  to  this  earlier  form  of  error,  perhaps 
the  most  perilous  that  the  Church  has  ever  known : 
"  The  whole  world  groaned  and  was  amazed  to  find 
itself  Gnostic^ 

*  H.  £".,  VI,  xxxii.  8. 


38  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

However  severely  we  may  condemn  these  specula- 
tions, we  cannot  but  sympathize  with  the  perplexities 
which  produced  them.  The  origin  of  the  universe, 
and  still  more  the  origin  of  evil,  still  remain  unsolved 
problems.  No  one  in  this  life  is  ever  likely  to  reach 
a  complete  solution  of  either.  What  is  the  origin  of 
the  material  universe  ?  To  assume  that  it  is  not  a 
creature,  but  that  matter  is  eternal,  is  to  make  two 
first  principles,  one  spiritual  and  one  material ;  and 
this  is  perilously  near  making  two  Gods.  But  the 
belief  that  God  made  the  world  is  by  no  means  free 
from  difficulty.  What  was  His  motive  in  making  the 
world  ?  Was  His  perfection  increased  by  it  ?  Then 
God  was  once  not  fully  perfect.  Was  His  perfection 
diminished  by  the  act  of  creation  ?  Then  God  is  now 
not  fully  perfect ;  and  how  can  we  suppose  that  He 
would  voluntarily  surrender  anything  of  His  absolute 
perfection  ?  Was  God  neither  the  better  nor  the 
worse  for  the  creation  of  the  universe  ?  Then  the 
original  question  returns  with  its  full  force :  What 
induced  Him  to  create  it  ?  We  cannot  suppose  that 
creation  was  an  act  of  caprice.  No  complete  answer 
to  this  enigma  is  possible  for  us.  One  thing  we  know ; 
— that  God  is  light  and  that  God  is  love.  And  we  may 
be  sure  that  in  exercising  His  creative  power  He  was 
manifesting  His  perfect  wisdom  and  His  exhaustless 
affection. 

But  will  the  knowledge  that  God  is  light  and  that  God 
is  love  help  us  to  even  a  partial  solution  of  that  problem 
which  has  wrung  the  souls  of  countless  saints  and 
thinkers  with  anguish — the  problem  of  the  origin  of 
evil?  How  could  a  God  who  is  perfectly  wise  and 
perfectly  good,  make  it  possible  for  evil  to  arise,  and 
allow  it  to  continue  after  it  had  arisen  ?     Once  more 


i.2,3.]  THE  GNOSTIC'S  PROBLEM.  39 

the  suggestion  that  there  are  two  First  Principles  pre- 
sents itself,  but  in  a  more  terrible  form.  Before,  it  was 
the  thought  that  there  are  two  co-eternal  Existences, 
God  and  Matter.  Now,  it  is  the  suggestion  that  there 
are  two  co-eternal,  and  perhaps  co-equal  Powers,  Good 
and  Evil.  This  hypothesis,  impossible  for  a  Christian 
and  rejected  by  John  Stuart  Mill,*  creates  more  diffi- 
culties than  it  solves.  But,  if  this  is  the  wrong  answer, 
what  is  the  right  one  ?  Cardinal  Newman,  in  one  of 
the  most  striking  passages  even  in  his  works,  has  told 
us  how  the  problem  presents  itself  to  him.  ^'  Starting 
then  with  the  being  of  God  (which,  as  I  have  said,  is 
as  certain  to  me  as  the  certainty  of  my  own  existence, 
though  when  I  try  to  put  the  grounds  of  that  certainty 
into  logical  shape,  I  find  difficulty  in  doing  so  in  mood 
and  figure  to  my  satisfaction),  I  look  out  of  myself  into 
the  world  of  men,  and  there  I  see  a  sight  which  fills  me 
with  unspeakable  distress.  The  world  seems  simply  to 
give  the  lie  to  that  great  truth,  of  which  my  whole  being 
is  so  full ;  and  the  effect  upon  me  is,  in  consequence, 
as  a  matter  of  necessity,  as  confusing  as  if  it  denied 
that  I  am  in  existence  myself.  If  I  looked  into  a  mirror, 
and  did  not  see  my  face,  I  should  have  the  sort  of  feeling 
which  actually  comes  upon  me,  when  I  look  into  this  living 
busy  world  and  see  no  reflection  of  its  Creator,  This 
is,  to  me,  one  of  the  great  difficulties  of  this  absolute 
primary  truth,  to  which  I  referred  just  now.  Were  it 
not  for  this  voice,  speaking  so  clearly  in  my  conscience 
and  my  heart,  I  should  be  an  atheist,  or  a  pantheist, 
or  a  polytheist,  when  I  looked  into  the  world.  I  am 
speaking  for  myself  only ;  and  I  am  far  from  denying 
the  real  force  of  the  arguments  in  proof  of  a  God,  drawn 

*  Three  Essays  on  Religion,  pp.  185,  186, 


40  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 

from  the  general  facts  of  huiran  society,  but  these  do 
not  warm  me  or  enhghten  me ;  they  do  not  take  away 
the  winter  of  my  desolation,  or  make  the  buds  unfold 
and  the  leaves  grow  within  me,  and  my  moral  being 
rejoice.  The  sight  of  the  world  is  nothing  else  than 
the  prophet's  scroll  full  of  '  lamentations,  and  mourn- 
ing, and  woe.'  .  .  .  What  shall  be  said  to  this  heart- 
piercing,  reason-bewildering  fact  ?  I  can  only  answer, 
that  either  there  is  no  Creator,  or  this  living  society  of 
men  is  in  a  true  sense  discarded  from  His  presence. 
Did  I  see  a  boy  of  good  make  and  mind,  with  the  tokens 
on  him  of  a  refined  nature,  cast  upon  the  world  without 
provision,  unable  to  say  w^hence  he  came,  his  birth- 
place or  his  family  connexions,  I  should  conclude  that 
there  was  some  mystery  connected  with  his  history,  and 
that  he  was  one,  of  whom,  from  one  cause  or  other,  his 
parents  were  ashamed.  Thus  only  should  I  be  able  to 
account  for  the  contrast  between  the  promise  and  con- 
dition of  his  being.  And  so  I  argue  about  the  world ; 
— //there  be  a  God,  since  there  is  a  God,  the  human 
race  is  implicated  in  some  terrible  aboriginal  calamity. 
It  is  out  of  joint  with  the  purposes  of  its  Creator.  This 
is  a  fact,  a  fact  as  true  as  the  fact  of  its  existence ;  and 
thus  the  doctrine  of  what  is  theologically  called  original 
sin  becomes  to  me  almost  as  certain  as  that  the  world 
exists,  and  as  the  existence  of  God."  * 

But  this  only  carries  us  a  short  way  towards  a  solu- 
tion. Why  did  God  allow  the  "aboriginal  calamity" 
of  sin  to  be  possible  ?  This  was  the  Gnostic's  difficulty, 
and  it  is  our  difficulty  still.  Can  we  say  more  than  this 
by  way  of  an  answer  ?  God  willed  that  angels  and 
men  should  honour  Him  with  a  voluntary  and  not  a 

•  Apohg^ia  pro  Vita  Sua  (Longmans,  1864),  pp.  376—379. 


I.  2,  3.]  THE   GNOSTIC'S  PROBLEM.  41 

mechanical  service.  If  they  obeyed  Him,  it  should  be 
of  their  own  free  will,  and  not  of  necessity.  It  should 
be  possible  to  them  to  refuse  service  and  obedience. 
In  short,  God  willed  to  be  reverenced  and  worshipped, 
and  not  merely  served  and  obeyed.  A  machine  can 
render  service;  and  a  person  under  the  influence  of 
mesmerism  may  be  forced  to  obey.  But  do  we  not  all 
feel  that  the  voluntary  service  of  a  conscious  and 
willmg  agent,  who  prefers  to  render  rather  than  to 
withhold  his  service,  is  a  nobler  thing  both  for  him  who 
gives,  and  him  who  receives  it?  Compulsory  labour  is 
apt  to  turn  the  servant  into  a  slave  and  the  master  into 
a  tyrant.  We  see,  therefore,  a  reason  why  the  Creator 
in  creating  conscious  beings  made  them  also  moral ; 
made  them  capable  of  obeying  Him  of  their  own  free 
will,  and  therefore  also  capable  of  disobeying  Him.  In 
other  words.  He  made  sin,  with  all  its  consequences, 
possible.  Then  it  became  merely  a  question  of  his- 
torical fact  whether  any  angelic  or  human  being  would 
ever  abuse  his  freedom  by  choosing  to  disobey.  That 
'*  aboriginal  calamity,"  we  know,  has  taken  place  ;  and 
all  the  moral  and  physical  evil  which  now  exists  in  the 
world,  is  the  natural  consequence  of  it. 

This  is,  perhaps,  the  best  solution  that  the  human 
mind  is  likely  to  discover,  respecting  this  primeval  and 
terrible  mystery.  But  it  is  only  a  partial  solution  ;  and 
the  knowledge  that  we  have  still  not  attained  to  a 
complete  answer  to  the  question  which  perplexed  the 
early  Gnostics,  ought  to  banish  from  our  minds  any- 
thing like  arrogance  or  contempt,  when  we  condemn 
their  answer  as  unchristian  and  inadequate.  '*  The  end 
of  the  charge  "  which  has  been  given  to  us  is  not  the 
condemnation  of  others,  but  "love  out  of  a  pure  heart 
and  a  good  conscience  and  faith  unfeigned," 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE  MORAL  TEACHING  OF  THE  GNOSTICS— ITS 
MODERN  COUNTERPART. 

"  But  we  know  that  the  law  is  good  if  a  man  use  it  lawfully,  as 
knowing  this,  that  law  is  not  made  for  a  righteous  man,  but  for  the 
lawless  and  unruly,  for  the  ungodly  and  sinners,  for  the  unholy  and 
profane,  for  murderers  of  fathers  and  murderers  of  mothers,  for  man- 
slayers,  for  fornicators,  for  abusers  of  themselves  with  men,  for  men- 
stealers,  for  liars,  for  false  swearers,  and  if  there  be  any  other  thing 
contrary  to  the  sound  doctrine;  according  to  the  gospel  of  the 
glory  of  the  blessed  God,  which  was  committed  to  my  trust " — 
I  Tim.  L  8—1 1. 

THE  speculations  of  the  Gnostics  in  their  attempts 
to  explain  the  origin  of  the  universe  and  the  origin 
of  evil,  were  wild  and  unprofitable  enough ;  and  in  some 
respects  involved  a  fundamental  contradiction  of  the 
plain  statements  of  Scripture.  But  it  was  not  so  much 
their  metaphysical  as  their  moral  teaching,  which 
seemed  so  perilous  to  St.  Paul.  Their  "  endless  gene- 
alogies "  might  have  been  left  to  fall  with  their  own 
dead  weight,  so  dull  and  uninteresting  were  they. 
Specimens  of  them  still  survive,  in  what  is  known  to 
us  of  the  systems  of  Basilides  and  Valentinus;  and 
which  of  us,  after  having  laboriously  worked  through 
them,  ever  wished  to  read  them  a  second  time  ?  But 
it  is  impossible  to  keep  one's  philosophy  in  one  com- 
partment in  one's  mind,  and  one's  religion  and  morality 
quite  separate  from  it  in  another.    However  unpractical 


i.8.ii.]      MORAL   TEACHING  OP  THE  GNOSTICS.  43 

metaphysical  speculations  may  appear,  it  is  beyond 
question  that  the  views  which  we  hold  respecting  such 
things  may  have  momentous  influence  upon  our  life. 
It  was  so  with  the  early  Gnostics,  whom  St.  Paul  urges 
Timothy  to  keep  in  check.  Their  doctrine  respecting 
the  nature  of  the  material  world  and  its  relation  to  God, 
led  to  two  opposite  forms  of  ethical  teaching,  each  of 
them  radically  opposed  to  Christianity. 

This  fact  fits  in  very  well  with  the  character  of  the 
Pastoral  Epistles,  all  of  which  deal  with  this  early  form 
of  error.  They  insist  upon  discipline  and  morality, 
more  than  upon  doctrine.  These  last  solemn  charges 
of  the  great  Apostle  aim  rather  at  making  Christian 
ministers,  and  their  congregations,  lead  pure  and  holy 
lives,  than  at  constructing  any  system  of  theology. 
Erroneous  teaching  must  be  resisted  ;  the  plain  truths 
of  the  Gospel  must  be  upheld  ;  but  the  main  thing  is 
holiness  of  life.  By  prayer  and  thanksgiving,  by  quiet 
and  grave  conduct,  by  modesty  and  temperance,  by 
self-denial  and  benevolence,  by  reverence  for  the  sanc- 
tity of  home  life,  Christians  will  furnish  the  best  antidote 
to  the  intellectual  and  moral  poison  which  the  false 
teachers  are  propagating.  '*  The  sound  doctrine  "  has 
its  fruit  in  a  healthy,  moral  life,  as  surely  as  the 
**  different  doctrine"  leads  to  spiritual  pride  and  lawless 
sensuality. 

The  belief  that  Matter  and  everything  material  is 
inherently  evil,  involved  necessarily  a  contempt  for  the 
human  body.  This  body  was  a  vile  thing  ;  and  it  was 
a  dire  calamity  to  the  human  mind  to  be  joined  to  such 
a  mass  of  evil.  From  this  premise  various  conclusions, 
some  doctrinal  and  some  ethical,  were  drawn. 

On  the  doctrinal  side  it  was  urged  that  the  resurrec- 
tion of  the  body  was   incredible.      It  was  disastrous 


44  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   20   TIMOTHY. 

enough  to  the  soul  that  it  should  be  burdened  with  a 
body  in  this  world.  That  this  degrading  alliance  would 
be  continued  in  the  world  to  come,  was  a  monstrous 
belief.  Equally  incredible  was  the  doctrine  of  the 
Incarnation.  How  could  the  Divine  Word  consent  to 
be  united  with  so  evil  a  thing  as  a  material  frame  ? 
Either  the  Son  of  Mary  was  a  mere  man,  or  the  body 
which  the  Christ  assumed  was  not  real.  It  is  with 
these  errors  that  St.  John  deals,  some  twelve  or  fifteen 
years  later,  in  his  Gospel  and  Epistles. 
i  On  the  ethical  side  the  tenet  that  the  human  body 
I  is  utterly  evil  produced  two  opposite  errors, — asceticism 
and  antinomian  sensuahty.  And  both  of  these  are  aimed 
at  in  these  Epistles.  If  the  enlightenment  of  the  soul 
is  everything,  and  the  body  is  utterly  worthless,  then 
this  vile  clog  to  the  movement  of  the  soul  must  be 
beaten  under  and  crushed,  in  order  that  the  higher 
nature  may  rise  to  higher  things.  The  body  must  be 
denied  all  indulgence,  in  order  that  it  may  be  starved 
into  submission  (iv.  3).  On  the  other  hand,  if  enlighten- 
ment is  everything  and  the  body  is  worthless,  then 
every  kind  of  experience,  no  matter  how  shameless,  is 
of  value,  in  order  to  enlarge  knowledge.  Nothing  that 
a  man  can  do  can  make  his  body  more  vile  than  it  is 
by  nature,  and  the  soul  of  the  enlightened  is  incapable 
of  pollution.  Gold  still  remains  gold,  however  often  it 
is  plunged  in  the  mire. 

The  words  of  the  three  verses  taken  as  a  text,  look 
as  if  St.  Paul  was  aiming  at  evil  of  this  kind.  These 
Judaizing  Gnostics  "  desired  to  be  teachers  of  the  Law." 
They  wished  to  enforce  the  Mosaic  Law,  or  rather  their 
fantastic  interpretations  of  it,  upon  Christians.  They 
insisted  upon  its  excellence,  and  would  not  allow  that 
it  has  been  in  many  respects  superseded.     "  We  know 


i.8-ii.]      MORAL   TEACHING  OF  THE   GNOSTICS.  4$ 

quite  well,"  says  the  Apostle,  "  and  readily  admit,  that 
the  Mosaic  Law  is  an  excellent  thing ;  provided  that 
those  who  undertake  to  expound  it  make  a  legitimate 
use  of  it.  They  must  remember  that,  just  as  law  in 
general  is  not  made  for  those  whose  own  good  prin- 
ciples keep  them  in  the  right,  so  also  the  restrictions 
of  the  Mosaic  Law  are  not  meant  for  Christians  who 
obey  the  Divine  will  in  the  free  spirit  of  the  Gospel." 
Legal  restrictions  are  intended  to  control  those  who 
will  not  control  themselves  ;  in  short,  for  the  very  men 
who  by  their  strange  doctrines  are  endeavouring  to 
curtail  the  liberties  of  others.  What  they  preach  as 
*'  the  Law  "  is  really  a  code  of  their  own,  *'  command- 
ments of  men  who  turn  away  from  the  truth.  .  .  .  They 
profess  that  they  know  God ;  but  by  their  works  they 
deny  Him,  being  abominable,  and  disobedient,  and  unto 
every  good  work  reprobate  "  (Tit.  i.  14,  16).  In  re- 
hearsing the  various  kinds  of  sinners  for  whom  law 
exists,  and  who  are  to  be  found  (he  hints)  among  these 
false  teachers,  he  goes  roughly  through  the  Decalogue. 
The  four  commandments  of  the  First  Table  are  indi- 
cated in  general  and  comprehensive  terms  ;  the  first 
five  commandments  of  the  Second  Table  are  taken  one 
by  one,  flagrant  violators  being  specified  in  each  case. 
Thus  the  stealing  of  a  human  being  in  order  to  make 
him  a  slave,  is  mentioned  as  the  most  outrageous  breach 
of  the  eighth  commandment.  The  tenth  command- 
ment is  not  distinctly  indicated,  possibly  because  the 
breaches  of  it  are  not  so  easily  detected.  The  overt 
acts  of  these  men  were  quite  sufficient  to  convict  them 
of  gross  immorality,  without  enquiring  as  to  their  secret 
wishes  and  desires.  In  a  word,  the  very  persons  who 
in  their  teaching  were  endeavouring  to  burden  men  with 
the  ceremonial  ordinances,  which  had  been  done  away 


4^  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMGTHV. 

in  Christ,  were  in  their  own  lives  violating  the  moral 
laws,  to  which  Christ  had  given  a  new  sanction.  They 
tried  to  keep  alive,  in  new  and  strange  forms,  what 
had  been  provisional  and  was  now  obsolete,  while  they 
trampled  under  foot  what  was  eternal  and  Divine. 

^^  If  there  be  any  other  thing  contrary  to  the  sound 
doctrine."  In  these  words  St.  Paul  sums  up  all  the 
forms  of  transgression  not  specified  in  his  catalogue. 
The  sound,  healthy  teaching  of  the  Gospel  is  opposed 
to  the  morbid  and  corrupt  teaching  of  the  Gnostics,  who 
are  sickly  in  their  speculations  (vi.  4),  and  whose  word 
is  like  an  eating  sore  (2  Tim.  ii.  17).  Of  course  healthy 
teaching  is  also  health- giving,  and  corrupt  teaching  is 
corrupting;  but  it  is  the  primary  and  not  the  derived 
quality  that  is  stated  here.  It  is  the  healthiness  of  the 
doctrine  in  itself,  and  its  freedom  from  what  is  diseased 
or  distorted,  that  is  insisted  upon.  Its  wholesome 
character  is  a  consequence  of  this. 

This  word  "  sound  "  or  "  healthy  "  {xryialvwvy  ir/ti](;), 
as  applied  to  doctrine,*  is  one  of  a  group  of  expressions 
which  are  peculiar  to  the  Pastoral  Epistles,  and  which 
have  been  condemned  as  not  belonging  to  St.  Paul's 
style  of  language.  He  never  uses  "healthy"  in  his 
other  Epistles ;  therefore  these  three  Epistles,  in  which 
the  phrase  occurs  eight  or  nine  times,  are  not  by  him. 

This  kind  of  argument  has  been  discussed  already, 
in  the  first  of  these  expositions.  It  assumes  the  manifest 
untruth,  that  as  life  goes  on  men  make  little  or  no 
change  in  the  stock  of  words  and  phrases  which  they 
habitually  use.  With  regard  to  this  particular  phrase, 
the  source  of  it  has  been  conjectured  with  a  fair  amount 
of  probability.     It  may  have  come  from  "  the  beloved 

*  I  Tim.  vi.  3 ;  2  Tim.  i.  13,  iv.  3;  Tit.  i.  9,  13,  ii.  i,  2,  8. 


1.8-1 1.]      MORAL   TEACH WG  OF  TB£  GNOSTICS.  47 

physician,"  who,  at  the  time  when  St.  Paul  wrote  the 
Second  Epistle  to  Timothy,  was  the  Apostle's  sole  com- 
panion. It  is  worth  remarking  that  the  word  here  used 
for  *^  sound  "  (with  the  exception  of  one  passage  in  the 
Third  Epistle  of  St.  John)  occurs  nowhere  in  the  New 
Testament  in  the  literal  sense  of  being  in  sound  bodily 
health,  except  in  the  Gospel  of  St.  Luke.  And  it 
occurs  nowhere  in  a  figurative  sense,  except  in  the 
Pastoral  Epistles.  It  is  obviously  a  medical  metaphor ; 
a  metaphor  which  any  one  who  had  never  had  anything 
to  do  with  medicine  might  easily  use,  but  which  is 
specially  likely  to  be  used  by  a  man  who  had  lived 
much  in  the  society  of  a  physician.  Before  we  call 
such  a  phrase  un- Pauline  we  must  ask  :  (i)  Is  there  any 
passage  in  the  earlier  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  where  he 
would  certainly  have  used  this  word  ^'  sound,"  had  he 
been  familiar  with  it  ?  (2)  Is  there  any  word  in  the 
earlier  Epistles  which  would  have  expressed  his  mean- 
ing here  equally  well  ?  If  either  of  these  questions 
is  answered  in  the  negative,  then  we  are  going  beyond 
our  knowledge  in  pronouncing  the  phrase  "  sound 
doctrine  "  *  to  be  un-Pauline.  ^ 

"  Contrary  to  the  sound  doctrine."  It  sums  up  in  a 
comprehensive  phrase  the  doctrinal  and  moral  teaching 
of  the  Gnostics.  What  they  taught  was  unsound  and 
morbid,  and  as  a  consequence  poisonous  and  pestilen- 
tial. While  professing  to  accept  and  expound  the 
Gospel,  they  really   disintegrated  it  and  explained   it 

*  The  Revisers  as  a  rule  render  8i.dacrKa\ia  by  "doctrine,"  as  here, 
iv.  6,  vi.  i,  3;  2  Tim.  iv.  3 ;  Tit.  i.  9,  ii.  i,  7,  10  (but  not  in  iv.  13,  16, 
V.  17;  2  Tim.  iii.  lo,  16),  while  they  render  8i8axv  by  "teaching," 
as  2  Tim.  iv.  2  ;  Tit.  i.  9,  and  frequently  in  the  Gospels.  But  5i- 
SaoKaXla,  as  being  closer  to  StSdcr/caXos  "a  teacher,"  is  "  teaching 
rather  than  "doctrine,"  and  didaxv  is  "doctrine"  rather  than 
*'  teaching."     See  p.  238. 


48  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHV. 

av,  ay.  They  destroyed  the  very  basis  of  the  Gospel 
message  ;  for  they  denied  the  reahty  of  sin.  And  they 
equally  destroyed  the  contents  of  the  message;  for 
they  denied  the  reality  of  the  Incarnation.  Nor  were 
they  less  revolutionary  on  the  moral  side  than  on 
the  doctrinal.  The  foundations  of  morality  are  sapped 
vi^hen  intellectual  enlightenment  is  accounted  as  the 
one  thing  needful,  while  conduct  is  treated  as  a  thing 
of  no  value.  Principles  of  morality  are  turned  upside 
down  when  it  is  maintained  that  any  act  which  adds  to 
one's  knowledge  is  not  only  allowable,  but  a  duty.  It 
is  necessary  to  remember  these  fatal  characteristics  of 
this  early  form  of  error,  in  order  to  appreciate  the  stern 
language  used  by  St.  Paul  and  St.  John  respecting  it, 
as  also  by  St.  Jude  and  the  author  of  the  Second  Epistle 
of  Peter. 

St.  John  in  his  Epistles  deals  mainly  with  the  doctrinal 
side  of  the  heresy, — the  denial  of  the  reality  of  sin  and 
of  the  reality  of  the  Incarnation :  *  although  the  moral 
results  of  doctrinal  error  are  also  indicated  and  con- 
demned.t  In  the  Apocalypse,  as  in  St.  Paul  and  in 
the  Cathohc  Epistles,  it  is  mainly  the  moral  side  of  the 
false  teaching  that  is  denounced,  and  that  in  both  its 
opposite  phases.  The  Epistle  to  the  Colossians  deals 
with  the  ascetic  tendencies  of  early  gnosticism. t  The 
Apocalypse  and  the  Catholic  Epistles  deal  with  its 
licentious  tendencies.  §  The  Pastoral  Epistles  treat  of 
both  asceticism  and  licentiousness,  but  chiefly  of  the 
latter,  as  is  seen  from  the  passage  before  us  and  from 

*  I  Jchn  i.  8-10,  ii.  22,  23,  iii.  4,  8,  iv.  2,  3,  15,  v.  I,  5,  16,  17;  2 
John  7. 

t  ii.  9,  II,  iii.  15,  17. 

\  ii.  16,  21,  23. 

§  Rev.  ii.  14,  20—22;  2  Peter  ii.  10—22 ;  Jude  8,  10.  13,  16,  18, 


i.8-ii.i      MORAL   TEACHING  OF  THE   GNOSTICS.  49 

the  first  part  of  chapter  iii.  in  the  Second  Epistle.  As 
we  might  expect,  St.  Paul  uses  stronger  language  in 
the  Pastoral  Epistles  than  he  does  in  writing  to  the 
Colossians ;  and  in  St.  John  and  the  Catholic  Epistles  we 
find  stronger  language  still.  Antinomian  licentiousness 
is  a  far  worse  evil  than  misguided  asceticism,  and  in 
the  interval  between  St.  Paul  and  the  other  writers  the 
profligacy  of  the  antinomian  Gnostics  had  increased. 
St.  Paul  warns  the  Colossians  against  delusive  "  per- 
suasiveness of  speech,"  against  "vain  deceit,"  **the 
rudiments  of  the  world,"  "  the  precepts  and  doctrines 
of  men."  He  cautions  Timothy  and  Titus  respecting 
"  seducing  spirits  and  doctrines  of  devils,"  "  profane 
and  old  wives'  fables,"  "  profane  babblings  "  and  teach- 
ings that  "will  eat  as  doth  a  gangrene,"  "vain  talkers 
and  deceivers"  whose  "mind  and  conscience  is  deceived," 
and  the  like.  St.  John  denounces  these  false  teachers 
as  "  liars,"  "  seducers,"  "  false  prophets,"  "  deceivers," 
and  *'  antichrists  ; "  and  in  Jude  and  the  Second  Epistle 
of  Peter  we  have  the  profligate  lives  of  these  false 
teachers  condemned  in  equally  severe  terms. 

It  should  be  observed  that  here  again  everything  falls 
into  its  proper  place  if  we  assume  that  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  were  written  some  years  later  than  the  Epistle 
to  the  Colossians  and  some  years  earlier  than  those 
of  St.  Jude  and  St.  John.  The  ascetic  tendencies  of 
Gnosticism  developed  first.  And  though  they  still  con- 
tinued in  teachers  like  Tatian  and  Marcion,  yet  from  the 
close  of  the  first  century  the  licentious  conclusions 
drawn  from  the  premises  that  the  human  body  is  worth- 
less and  that  all  knowledge  is  divine,  became  more  and 
more  prevalent ;  as  is  seen  in  the  teaching  of  Carpo- 
crates  and  Epiphanes,  and  in  the  monstrous  sect  of  the 
Cainites.     It  was  quite  natural,  therefore,  that  St.  Paul 

4 


S6  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

should  attack  Gnostic  asceticism  first  in  writing  to  the 
Colossians,  and  afterwards  both  it  and  Gnostic  Hcen- 
tiousness  in  writing  to  Timothy  and  Titus.  It  was 
equally  natural  that  his  language  should  grow  stronger 
as  he  saw  the  second  evil  developing,  and  that  those 
who  saw  this  second  evil  at  a  more  advanced  stage 
should  use  sterner  language  still. 

The  extravagant  theories  of  the  Gnostics  to  account 
for  the  origin  of  the  universe  and  the  origin  of  evil  are 
gone  and  are  past  recall.  It  would  be  impossible  to 
induce  people  to  believe  them,  and  only  a  comparatively 
small  number  of  students  ever  even  read  them.  But 
the  heresy  that  knowledge  is  more  important  than 
conduct,  that  brilliant  intellectual  gifts  render  a  man 
superior  to  the  moral  law,  and  that  much  of  the  moral 
law  itself  is  the  tyrannical  bondage  of  an  obsolete  tradi- 
tion, is  as  dangerous  as  ever  it  was.  It  is  openly 
preached  and  frequently  acted  upon.  The  great 
Florentine  artist,  Benvenuto  Cellini,  tells  us  in  his  auto- 
biography that  when  Pope  Paul  III.  expressed  his 
willingness  to  forgive  him  an  outrageous  murder  com- 
mitted in  the  streets  of  Rome,  one  of  the  gentlemen  at 
the  Papal  Court  ventured  to  remonstrate  with  the  Pope 
for  condoning  so  heinous  a  crime.  "  You  do  not 
understand  the  matter  as  well  as  I  do,"  replied  Paul  III. : 
"  I  would  have  you  to  know  that  men  like  Benvenuto, 
unique  in  their  profession,  are  not  bound  by  the  laws." 
Cellini  is  a  braggart,  and  it  is  possible  that  in  this 
particular  he  is  romancing.  But,  even  if  the  story  is 
his  invention,  he  merely  attributes  to  the  Pope  the 
sentiments  which  he  cherished  himself,  and  upon  which 
(as  experience  taught  him)  other  people  acted.  Over 
and  over  again  his  murderous  violence  was  overlooked 
by  those  in  authority,  because  they  admired  and  wished 


i.8-ii.]      MORAL   TEACHING  OF  TH^  GNOSTICS.  51 

to  make  use  of  his  genius  as  an  artist.  '*  Ability  before 
honesty  "  was  a  common  creed  in  the  sixteenth  century, 
and  it  is  abundantly  prevalent  in  our  own.  The  most 
notorious  scandals  in  a  man's  private  life  are  condoned 
if  only  he  is  recognized  as  having  talent.  It  is  the  old 
.  Gnostic  error  in  a  modern  and  sometimes  agnostic  form. 
It  is  becoming  daily  more  clear  that  the  one  thing 
needful  for  the  regeneration  of  society,  whether  upper, 
middle,  or  lower,  is  the  creation  of  a  "  sound "  public 
opinion.  And  so  long  as  this  is  so,  God's  ministers 
and  all  who  have  the  duty  of  instructing  others  will 
need  to  lay  to  heart  the  warnings  which  St.  Paul  gives 
to  his  followers  Timothy  and  Titus. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  LORD'S  COMPASSION  IN  ENABLING  A  BLAS- 
PHEMER AND  A  PERSECUTOR  TO  BECOME  A 
SERVANT  OF  CHRIST  JESUS  AND  A  PREACHER 
OF  THE   GOSPEL. 

"I  thank  Him  that  enabled  me,  even  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord,  for 
that  He  counted  me  faithful,  appointing  me  to  His  service ;  though  I 
was  before  a  blasphemer,  and  a  persecutor,  and  injurious  ;  hovvLeit 
1  obtained  mercy,  because  I  did  it  ignorantly  in  unbelief;  and  the 
grace  of  our  Lord  abounded  exceedingly  with  faith  and  love  which 
is  in  Christ  Jesus." — I  Tim.  i.  12 — 14. 

IN  the  concluding  sentence  of  the  preceding  paragraph 
(vv.  3,  11)  the  Apostle  points  out  that  what  he  has 
been  saying  respecting  the  erroneous  teaching  and 
practice  of  the  heterodox  innovators  is  entirely  in 
harmony  with  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel  which  had  been 
committed  to  his  trust.*  This  mention  of  his  own 
high  commission  to  preach  "  the  Gospel  of  the  glory 
of  the  blessed  God"  suggests  at  once  to  him  some 
thoughts  both  of  thankfulness  and  hun.ility,  to  which 
he  now  gives  expression.  His  own  experience  of  the 
Gospel,  especially  in  connexion  with  his  conversion 
from  being  a  persecutor  to  becoming  a  preacher,  offer 

*  It  is  worth  while  pointing  out  that  the  peculiar  construction 
8  eiriffTevGrji'  iyd)  occurs  in  the  New  Testament,  only  in  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  and  in  other  Pauline  Epistles,  the  genuineness  of  which  is 
now  scarcely  disputed — I  Thess.  ii.  4  *  I  Cor.  ix.  17;  Rom.  iii.  a; 
Gal,  ii.  7, 


i.  12-14.]  THE  LORD'S  COMPASSIONS  53 

further  points  of  contrast  between  Gnosticism  and 
Christianity. 

The  false  teachers  wasted  thought  and  attention 
upon  barren  speculations,  which,  even  if  they  could 
under  any  conceivable  circumstances  be  proved  true, 
would  have  supplied  no  guidance  to  mankind  in  re- 
gulating conduct.  And  whenever  Gnostic  teaching 
became  practical,  it  frittered  away  morality  in  servile 
observances,  based  on  capricious  interpretations  of  the 
Mosaic  Law.  Of  true  morality  there  was  an  utter 
disregard,  and  frequently  an  open  violation.  Of  the 
one  thing  for  which  the  self-accusing  conscience  was 
yearning — the  forgiveness  of  sin — it  knew  nothing, 
because  it  had  no  appreciation  of  the  reality  of  sin. 
Sin  was  only  part  of  the  evil  which  was  inherent  in 
the  material  universe,  and  therefore  in  the  human  body. 
A  system  which  had  no  place  for  the  forgiveness  of 
sin  had  also  no  place  for  the  Divine  compassion,  which 
it  is  the  purpose  of  the  Gospel  to  reveal.  How  very 
real  this  compassion  and  forgiveness  are,  and  how 
much  human  beings  stand  in  need  of  them,  St.  Paul 
testifies  from  his  own  experience,  the  remembrance  of 
which  makes  him  burst  out  into  thanksgiving. 

The  Apostle  offers  thanks  to  Jesus  Christ,  the  source 
of  all  his  strength,  for  having  confidence  in  him  as  a 
person  worthy  of  trust.  This  confidence  He  proved 
by  "  appointing  Paul  to  His  service ;  "  a  confidence  all 
the  more  marvellous  and  worthy  of  gratitude  because 
Paul  had  before  been  "  a  blasphemer,  and  a  persecutor, 
and  injurious."  He  had  been  a  blasphemer,  for  he 
had  thought  that  he  "  ought  to  do  many  things  con- 
trary to  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ; "  and  he  had 
been  a  persecutor  for  he  had  punished  behevers  "  often- 
times in  all  the  synagogues,"   and    "strove   to   makq 


54  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 

them  blaspheme."  That  is  ever  the  persecutor's  aim ; 
— to  make  those  who  differ  from  him  speak  evil  of 
what  they  reverence  but  he  abhors;  to  say  they  re- 
nounce what  in  their  heart  of  hearts  they  believe. 
There  is,  therefore,  thus  far  an  ascending  scale  in  the 
iniquity  which  the  Apostle  confesses.  He  not  only 
blasphemed  the  Divine  Name  himself,  but  he  en- 
deavoured to  compel  others  to  do  the  same.  The  third 
word,  although  the  English  Version  obscures  the  fact, 
continues  the  ascending  scale  of  self-condemnation. 
"  Injurious "  does  scant  justice  to  the  force  of  the 
Greek  word  used  by  the  Apostle  (v^pL(7T7]<i),  although 
it  is  not  easy  to  suggest  a  better  rendering.  The  word 
is  very  common  in  classical  authors,  but  in  the  New 
Testament  occurs  only  here  and  in  Rom.  i.  30,  where 
the  A.V.  translates  it  ''despiteful"  and  the  R.V. 
"insolent."  It  is  frequent  in  the  Septuagint.  It  in- 
dicates one  who  takes  an  insolent  and  wanton  delight 
in  violence,  one  whose  pleasure  lies  in  outraging  the 
feelings  of  others.  The  most  conspicuous  instance  of 
it  in  the  New  Testament,  and  perhaps  anywhere,  would 
be  the  Roman  soldiers  mocking  and  torturing  Jesus 
Christ  with  the  crown  of  thorns  and  the  royal  robe. 
Of  such  conduct  St.  Paul  himself  since  his  conversion 
had  been  the  victim,  and  he  here  confesses  that  before 
his  conversion  he  had  been  guilty  of  it  himself.  In 
his  misguided  zeal  he  had  punished  innocent  people, 
and  he  had  inflicted  punishment,  not  with  pitying  re- 
luctance, but  with  arrogant  delight. 

It  is  worth  pointing  out  that  in  this  third  charge 
against  himself,  as  well  as  in  the  first,  St.  Paul  goes 
beyond  what  he  states  in  the  similar  passages  in  the 
Epistles  to  the  Corinthians,  Philippians,  and  Galatians. 
There  he  simply  draws  attention  to  the  fact  that  he 


i.  12-14.]  THE  LORD'S  COMPASSION.  55 

had  been  a  persecutor  who  had  made  havoc  of  the 
Church.*  He  says  nothing  about  blaspheming  or 
taking  an  insolent  satisfaction  in  the  pain  which  he 
inflicted.  This  has  some  bearing  on  the  genuineness 
of  this  Epistle,  (i)  It  shows  that  St.  Paul  was  in  the 
habit  of  alluding  to  the  fact  that  he  had  been  a  per- 
secutor. It  was  part  of  his  preaching,  for  it  proved 
that  his  conversion  was  directly  and  immediately  God's 
work.  He  did  not  owe  the  Gospel  which  he  preached 
to  any  persuasion  on  the  part  of  man.  It  is,  therefore, 
quite  in  harmony  with  St.  Paul's  practice  to  insist  on 
his  former  misconduct.  But  it  may  be  urged  that  a 
forger  might  notice  this  and  imitate  it.  That  of  course 
is  true.  But  if  these  Epistles  are  a  forgery,  they  are 
certainly  not  forged  with  any  intention  of  injuring  St. 
Paul's  memory.  Is  it  likely,  then,  that  a  forger  in 
imitating  the  self-accusation  of  the  Apostle,  would  use 
stronger  language  than  the  Apostle  himself  uses  in 
those  Epistles  which  are  indisputably  his  ?  Would 
he  go  out  of  his  way  to  use  such  strong  language 
as  "  blasphemer,"  and  "  insolent  oppressor  "  ?  But,  if 
St.  Paul  wrote  these  Epistles,  this  exceptionally  strong 
language  is  thoroughly  natural  in  a  passage  in  which 
the  Apostle  wishes  to  place  in  as  strong  a  light  as  may 
be  the  greatness  of  the  Divine  compassion  in  forgiving 
sins,  as  manifested  in  his  own  case.  He  had  been 
foremost  as  a  bitter  and  arrogant  opponent  of  the 
Gospel ;  and  yet  God  had  singled  him  out  to  be  fore- 
most in  preachmg  it.  Here  was  a  proof  that  no  sinner 
need  despair.  What  comfort  for  a  fallen  race  could 
the  false  teachers  offer  in  comparison  with  this  ? 

Like  St.  Peter's  sin  in  denying  His  Lord,  St.  Paul's 

*  I  Cor.  XV,  8,  lo ;  Gal.  i.  13,  23 ;  Phil.  iii.  6 ;  comp.  Acts  xxii.  4, 
5.  19. 


56  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

sin  in  persecuting  Him  was  overruled  for  good.  The 
Divine  process  of  bringing  good  out  of  evil  was  strongly 
exemplified  in  it.  The  Gnostic  teachers  had  tried  to 
show  how,  by  a  gradual  degradation,  evil  might  proceed 
from  the  Supreme  Good.  There  is  nothing  Divine 
jn  such  a  process  as  that.  The  fall  from  good  to  evil 
is  rather  a  devilish  one,  as  when  an  angel  of  light 
became  the  evil  one  and  involved  mankind  in  his  own 
fall.  Divinity  is  shown  in  the  converse  process  of 
making  what  is  evil  work  towards  what  is  good. 
Under  Divine  guidance  St.  Paul's  self-righteous  con- 
fidence and  arrogant  intolerance  were  turned  into 
a  blessing  to  himself  and  others.  The  recollection  of 
his  sin  kept  him  humble,  intensified  his  gratitude,  and 
gave  him  a  strong  additional  motive  to  devote  himself 
to  the  work  of  bringing  others  to  the  Master  who  had 
been  so  gracious  to  himself.  St.  Chrysostom  in  com- 
menting on  this  passage  in  his  Homilies  on  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  points  out  how  it  illustrates  St.  Paul's  humility, 
a  virtue  which  is  more  often  praised  than  practised. 
**  This  quality  was  so  cultivated  by  the  blessed  Paul, 
that  he  is  ever  looking  out  for  inducements  to  be 
humble.  They  who  are  conscious  to  themselves  of 
great  merits  must  struggle  much  with  themselves  if 
they  would  be  humble.  And  he  too  was  one  likely  to 
be  under  violent  temptations,  his  own  good  conscience 
swelling  him  up  like  a  gathering  tumour.  .  .  .  Being 
filled,  therefore,  with  high  thoughts,  and  having  used 
magnificent  expressions,  he  at  once  depresses  himself, 
and  engages  others  also  to  do  the  like.  Having  said, 
then,  that  the  Gospel  was  committed  to  his  trusty  lest  this 
should  seem  to  be  said  with  pride,  he  checks  himself  at 
once,  adding  by  way  of  correction,  /  thank  Him  that 
enabled  me,  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord,  for  that  He  counted  me 


1. 12-14.]  THE  LORDS  COMPASSION.  57 

faithful,  appointing  me  to  His  service.  Thus  every- 
where, we  see,  he  conceals  his  own  merit  and  ascribes 
everything  to  God,  yet  so  far  only  as  not  to  take  away 
free  will." 

These  concluding  words  are  an  important  qualifica- 
tion. The  Apostle  constantly  insists  on  his  conversion 
as  the  result  of  a  special  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ  to 
himself,  in  other  words  a  miracle :  he  nowhere  hints 
that  his  conversion  in  itself  was  miraculous.  No  psy- 
chological miracle  was  wrought,  forcing  him  to  accept 
Christ  against  his  will.  God  converts  no  one  by 
magic.  It  is  a  free  and  reasonable  service  that  he 
asks  for  from  beings  whom  He  has  created  free  and 
reasonable.  Men  were  made  moral  beings,  and  He 
who  made  them  such  does  not  treat  them  as  machines. 
In  his  defence  at  Caesarea  St.  Paul  tells  Herod  Agrippa 
that  he  ^'  was  not  disobedient  to  the  heavenly  vision." 
He  might  have  been.  He  might,  like  Judas,  have 
resisted  all  the  miraculous  power  displayed  before  him 
and  have  continued  to  persecute  Christ.  If  he  had 
no  choice  whatever  in  the  matter,  it  was  an  abuse  of 
language  to  affirm  that  he  "was  not  disobedient."  And 
in  that  case  we  should  need  some  other  metaphor  than 
"kicking  against  the  goads."  It  is  impossible  to  kick 
against  the  goads  if  one  has  no  control  over  one's  own 
limbs.  The  limbs  and  the  strength  to  use  them  were 
God's  gifts,  without  which  he  could  have  done  nothing. 
But  with  these  gifts  it  was  open  to  him  either  to  obey  the 
Divine  commands  or  ^' even  to  fight  against  God" — a 
senseless  and  wicked  thing,  no  doubt,  but  still  possible. 
In  this  passage  the  Divine  and  the  human  sides  are 
plainly  indicated.  On  the  one  hand,  Christ  enabled 
him  and  showed  confidence  in  him  :  on  the  other,  Paul 
accepted  the  service  and  was  faithful.     He  might  have 


58  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

refused  the  service;  or,  having  accepted  it,  he  might 
have  shown  himself  unfaithful  to  his  trust. 

*'  Howbeit,  I  obtained  mercy  because  I  did  it  ignor- 
antly  in  unbeHef."  These  words  are  sometimes  mis- 
understood. They  are  not  intended  as  an  excuse,  any 
more  than  St.  John's  designation  of  himself  as  "  the 
disciple  whom  Jesus  loved  "  are  intended  as  a  boast. 
St.  John  had  been  the  recipient  of  very  exceptional 
favours.  Along  with  only  St.  Peter  and  St.  James  he 
had  been  present  at  the  raising  of  Jairus's  daughter, 
at  the  Transfiguration,  and  at  the  Agony  in  the  Geth- 
semane.  From  even  these  chosen  three  he  had  been 
singled  out  to  be  told  who  was  the  traitor ;  to  have  the 
lifelong  charge  of  providing  for  the  Mother  of  the  Lord ; 
to  be  the  first  to  recognize  the  risen  Lord  at  the  sea 
of  Tiberias.*  What  was  the  explanation  of  all  these 
honours  ?  The  recipient  of  them  had  only  one  to  give. 
He  had  no  merits,  no  claim  to  anything  of  the  kind ; 
but  Jesus  loved  him. 

So  also  with  St.  Paul.  There  were  multitudes  of 
Jews  who,  Hke  himself,  had  had,  as  he  tells  the  Romans, 
*^a  zeal  for  God,  but  not  according  to  knowledge."! 
There  were  many  who,  like  himself,  had  opposed  the 
truth  and  persecuted  the  Christ.  Why  did  any  of 
them  obtain  mercy  ?  Why  did  he  receive  such  marked 
favour  and  honour  ?  Not  because  of  any  merit  on 
their  part  or  his  :  but  because  they  had  sinned  ignor- 
antly  {i.e.,  without  knowing  the  enormity  of  their  sin), 
and  because  "the  grace  of  the  Lord  abounded  ex- 
ceedingly." The  Apostle  is  not  endeavouring  to 
extenuate  his  own  culpabiHty,  but  to  justify  and 
magnify  the  Divine  compassion.     Of  the  whole  Jewish 

*  St.  John  xiii.  23,  xix.  26,  xxi.  7, 
t  Rom.  X.  2. 


i.  12-14.)  THE  LORD'S  COMPASSION.  59 

nation  it  was  true  that  "  they  knew  not  what  they  did  " 
in  crucifying  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ;  but  it  was  true  in 
very  various  degrees.  "  Even  of  the  rulers  many 
believed  on  Him  ;  but  because  of  the  Pharisees  they 
did  not  confess,  lest  they  should  be  put  out  of  the 
synagogue :  for  they  loved  the  glory  of  men  more  than 
the  glory  of  God."  It  was  because  St.  Paul  did  not  in 
this  way  sin  against  light  that  he  found  mercy,  not 
merely  in  being  forgiven  the  sin  of  persecuting  Christ, 
but  in  being  enabled  to  accept  and  be  faithful  in  the 
service  of  Him  whom  he  had  persecuted. 

Two  of  the  changes  made  by  the  Revisers  in  this 
passage  seem  to  call  for  notice  :  they  both  occur  in  the 
same  phrase  and  have  a  similar  tendency.  Instead 
of  ^^ putting  me  into  the  ministry^^  the  R.V.  gives  us 
'^  appointing  me  to  His  serviced  A  similar  change  has 
been  made  in  v,  7  of  the  next  chapter,  where  "  I  was 
appointed  a  preacher  "  takes  the  place  of  "  I  am  ordained 
a  preacher,"  and  in  John  xv.  16  where  "  I  chose  you 
and  appointed  you  "  has  been  substituted  for  "  I  have 
chosen  you  and  ordained  you."*  In  these  alterations 
the  Revisers  are  only  following  the  example  set  by  the 
A.V.  itself  in  other  passages.  In  2  Tim.  i.  II,  as  in 
Luke  X.  I,  and  I  Thess.  v.  9,  both  versions  have  *'  ap- 
pointed." The  alterations  are  manifest  improvements. 
In  the  passage  before  us  it  is  possible  that  the  Greek 
has  the  special  signification  of  *^  putting  me  into  the 
ministry,"  but  it  is  by  no  means  certain,  and  perhaps 
,  not  even  probable,  that  it  does  so.  Therefore  the  more 
comprehensive  and  general  translation,  "appointing  me 
to  His  service,"  is  to  be  preferred.  The  wider  rendering 
includes  and   covers  the  other;  and  this  is  a  further 

*  Comp.  Acts  xxii.  14  and  2  Cor.  viil   19;  also  Mark  iii.  14  and 
Acts  xiv.  23.     See  on  Tit.  i.  5 — 7. 


6o  TH2  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

advantage.  To  translate  the  Greek  words  used  in  these 
passages  {jLQkvai,  nroLetv,  k.t-X.)  by  such  a  very  definite 
v^^ord  as  "ordain"  leads  the  reader  to  suppose  these 
texts  refer  to  the  ecclesiastical  act  of  ordination ;  of 
which  there  is  no  evidence.  The  idea  conveyed  by 
the  Greek  in  this  passage,  as  in  John  xv.  1 6,  is  that  of 
placing  a  man  at  a  particular  post,  and  would  be  as 
applicable  to  civil  as  to  ministerial  duties.  We  are  not, 
therefore,  justified  in  translating  it  by  a  phrase  which 
has  distinct  ecclesiastical  associations. 

The  question  is  not  one  of  mere  linguistic  accuracy. 
There  are  larger  issues  involved  than  those  of  correct 
translation  from  Greek  to  English.  If  we  adopt  the 
wider  rendering,  then  it  is  evident  that  the  blessing 
for  which  St.  Paul  expresses  heartfelt  gratitude,  and 
which  he  cites  as  evidence  of  Divine  compassion  and 
forgiveness,  is  not  the  call  to  be  an  Apostle,  in  which 
none  of  us  can  share,  nor  exclusively  the  call  to  be  a 
minister  of  the  Gospel,  in  which  only  a  limited  number 
of  us  can  share ;  but  also  the  being  appointed  to  any 
service  in  Christ's  kingdom,  which  is  an  honour  to 
which  all  Christians  are  called.  Every  earnest  Christian 
knows  from  personal  experience  this  evidence  of  the 
Divine  character  of  the  Gospel.  It  is  full  of  compas- 
sion for  those  who  have  sinned ;  not  because,  like  the 
Gnostic  teachers,  it  glosses  over  the  malignity  and 
culpability  of  sin,  but  because,  unlike  Gnosticism,  it 
recognizes  the  preciousness  of  each  human  soul,  and 
the  difficulties  which  beset  it.  Every  Christian  knows 
that  he  has  inherited  an  evil  nature  : — so  far  he  and 
the  Gnostic  are  agreed.  But  he  also  knows  that  to 
the  sin  which  he  has  inherited  he  has  added  sin  for 
which  he  is  personally  responsible,  and  which  his  con- 
science does  not  excuse  as  if  it  were  something  which 


1.12-14.]  THE  LORD'S  COMPASSION.  6i 

is  a  misfortune  and  not  a  fault.  Yet  he  is  not  left 
without  remedy  under  the  burden  of  these  self-accusa- 
tions. He  knows  that,  if  he  seeks  for  it,  he  can  find 
forgiveness,  and  forgiveness  of  a  singularly  generous 
kind.  He  is  not  only  forgiven,  but  restored  to  favour 
and  treated  with  respect.  He  is  at  once  placed  in  a 
position  of  trust.  In  spite  of  the  past,  it  is  assumed 
that  he  will  be  a  faithful  servant,  and  he  is  allowed  to 
minister  to  his  Master  and  his  Master's  followers.  To 
him  also  ''the  grace  of  our  Lord"  has  "abounded 
exceedingly  with  faith  and  love  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus."  The  generous  compassion  shown  to  St.  Paul 
is  not  unique  or  exceptional ;  it  is  typical.  And  it  is  a 
type,  not  to  the  few,  but  to  many ;  not  to  clergy  only, 
but  to  all.  "  For  this  cause  I  obtained  mercy,  that  in 
me  as  chief  might  Jesus  Christ  show  forth  all  His  long- 
suffering,  for  an  ensample  of  them  which  should  hereafter 
believe  on  Him  unto  eternal  life." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  PROPHECIES  ON  TIMOTHY.— THE  PROPHETS  OF 

THE   NEW   TESTAMENT,    AN    EXCEPTIONAL    IN- 
STRUMENT OF  EDIFICATION 

"This  charge  I  commit  unto  thee,  my  own  child  Timothy,  according 
to  the  prophecies  which  went  before  on  thee,  that  by  them  thou 
mayest  war  the  good  warfare  ;  holding  faith  and  a  good  conscience ; 
which  some  having  thrust  from  them  made  shipwreck  concerning  the 
faith  :  of  whom  is  Hymenseus  and  Alexander ;  whom  I  delivered 
unto  Satan,  that  they  might  be  taught  not  to  blaspheme." — I  Tim. 
i.  18—20. 

IN  this  section  St.  Paul  returns  from  the  subject  of 
the  false  teachers  against  whom  Timothy  has  to 
contend  (w.  3 — II),  and  the  contrast  to  their  teaching 
exhibited  by  the  Gospel  in  the  Apostle's  own  case 
(vv.  12 — 17),  to  the  main  purpose  of  the  letter,  viz., 
the  instructions  to  be  given  to  Timothy  for  the  due 
performance  of  his  difficult  duties  as  overseer  of  the 
Church  of  Ephesus.  The  section  contains  two  subjects 
of  special  interest,  each  of  which  requires  considera- 
tion ; — the  prophecies  respecting  Timothy  and  the 
punishment  of  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander. 

I.  "This  charge  I  commit  unto  thee,  my  child 
Timothy,  according  to  the  prophecies  which  went  before 
on  thee."  As  the  margin  of  the  R.V.  points  out,  this 
last  phrase  might  also  be  read  "  according  to  the 
prophecies  which  led  the  way  to  thee"  for  the  Greek 
may  mean  either.     The  question  is,  whether  St.  Paul 


i.i8-20.]        THE  PROPHECIES  ON  TIMOTHY,  63 

is  referring  to  certain  prophecies  which  'Med  the  way 
to"  Timothy,  i.e.,  which  designated  him  as  specially 
suited  for  the  ministry,  and  led  to  his  ordination  by 
St.  Paul  and  the  presbyters ;  or  whether  he  is  referring 
to  certain  prophecies  which  were  uttered  over  Timothy 
(eVt  o-e)  either  at  the  time  of  his  conversion  or  of 
his  admission  to  the  ministry.  Both  the  A.V.  and 
the  R.V.  give  the  preference  to  the  latter  rendering, 
which  (without  excluding  such  a  view)  does  not  com- 
mit us  to  the  opinion  that  St.  Paul  was  in  any  sense 
led  to  Timothy  by  these  prophecies,  a  thought  which 
is  not  clearly  intimated  in  the  original.  All  that  we 
are  certain  of  is,  that  long  before  the  writing  of  this 
letter  prophecies  of  which  Timothy  was  the  object 
were  uttered  over  him,  and  that  they  were  of  such  a 
nature  as  to  be  an  incentive  and  support  to  him  in  his 
ministry. 

But  if  we  look  on  to  the  fourteenth  verse  of  the 
fourth  chapter  in  this  Epistle  and  to  the  sixth  of  the 
first  chapter  in  the  Second,  we  shall  not  have  much 
doubt  when  these  prophecies  were  uttered.  There  we 
read,  '*  Neglect  not  the  gift  that  is  in  thee,  which  was 
given  thee  by  prophecy^  with  the  laying  on  of  the  hands 
of  the  presbytery  ! "  and  "  For  which  cause  I  put  thee 
in  remembrance  that  thou  stir  up  the  gift  of  God,  which 
is  in  thee  through  the  laying  on  of  my  hands."  Must 
we  not  believe  that  these  two  passages  and  the  passage 
before  us  all  refer  to  the  same  occasion— the  same  crisis 
in  Timothy's  life  ?  In  all  three  of  them  St.  Paul  ap- 
peals to  the  spiritual  gift  that  was  bestowed  upon  his 
disciple  "  by  means  o/"  prophecy  "  and  ''  by  means  of  the 
laying  on  of  hands."  The  same  preposition  and  case 
(Sta  with  the  genitive)  is  used  in  each  case.  Clearly, 
then,  we  are  to  understand  that  the  prophesying  and  the 


64  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

laying  on  of  hands  accompanied  one  another.  Here 
only  the  prophesying  is  mentioned.  In  chapter  iv. 
the  prophesying,  accompanied  by  the  imposition  of  the 
presbyters'  hands,  is  the  means  by  which  the  grace  is 
conferred.  In  the  Second  Epistle  only  the  laying  on  of 
the  Apostle's  hands  is  mentioned,  and  it  is  spoken  of  as 
the  means  by  which  the  grace  is  conferred.  Therefore, 
although  the  present  passage  by  itself  leaves  the 
question  open,  yet  when  we  take  the  other  two  into 
consideration  along  with  it,  we  may  safely  neglect  the 
possibility  of  prophecies  which  led  the  way  to  the 
ordination  of  Timothy,  and  understand  the  Apostle  as 
referring  to  those  sacred  utterances  which  were  a 
marked  element  in  his  disciple's  ordination  and  formed 
a  prelude  and  earnest  of  his  ministry.  These  sacred 
utterances  indicated  a  Divine  commission  and  Divine 
approbation  publicly  expressed  respecting  the  choice  of 
Timothy  for  this  special  work.  They  were  also  a 
means  of  grace;  for  by  means  of  them  a  spiritual 
blessing  was  bestowed  upon  the  young  minister.  In 
alluding  to  them  here,  therefore,  St.  Paul  reminds  him 
Who  it  was  by  whom  he  w^as  really  chosen  and  ordained. 
It  is  as  if  he  said,  "  We  laid  our  hands  upon  you ;  but 
it  was  no  ordinary  election  made  by  human  votes.  It 
was  God  who  elected  you ;  God  who  gave  you  your 
commission,  and  with  it  the  power  to  fulfil  it.  Beware, 
therefore,  of  disgracing  His  appointment  and  of  neglect- 
ing or  abusing  His  gift."* 

The  voice  of  prophecy,  therefore,  either  pointed  out 
Timothy  as  a  chosen  vessel  for  the  ministry^  or  publicly 
ratified  the  choice  which  had  already  been  made  by 
St.  Paul  and  others.     But  by  whom  was  this  voice  of 

*  Chrysostom  in  loco.  Horn.  v.  sub  init. 


i.  18-20.3        THE  PROPHECIES  ON  TIMOTHY,  65 

prophecy  uttered  ?  By  a  special  order  of  prophets  ? 
Or  by  St.  Paul  and  the  presbyters  specially  inspired  to 
act  as  such  ?  The  answer  to  this  question  involves 
some  consideration  of  the  office,  or  x2i\\\^T  function^  of  a 
prophet,  especially  in  the  New  Testament. 

The  word  "  prophet "  is  frequently  understood  in 
far  too  limited  a  sense.  It  is  commonly  restricted  to 
the  one  function  of  predicting  the  future.  But,  if  we 
may  venture  to  coin  words  in  order  to  bring  out  points 
of  differences,  there  are  three  main  ideas  involved  in 
the  title  *'  prophet."  (i)  A /or- teller;  one  who  speaks 
for  or  instead  of  another,  especially  one  who  speaks 
for  or  in  the  name  of  God  ;  a  Divine  messenger, 
ambassador,  interpreter,  or  spokesman.  (2)  A  forth- 
teller ;  one  who  has  a  special  message  to  deliver  forth 
to  the  world  ;  a  proclaimer,  harbinger,  or  herald.  (3) 
A /or^- teller;  one  who  tells  beforehand  what  is  coming; 
a  predicter  of  future  events.  To  be  the  bearer  or 
interpreter  of  a  Divine  message  is  the  fundamental 
conception  of  the  prophet  in  classical  Greek  ;  and  to 
a  large  extent  this  conception  prevails  in  both  the  Old 
and  the  New  Testament.  To  be  in  immediate  inter- 
course with  Jehovah,  and  to  be  His  spokesman  to 
Israel,  was  what  the  Hebrews  understood  by  the  gi  t 
of  prophecy.  It  was  by  no  means  necessary  that  the 
Divine  communication  which  the  prophet  had  to  make 
known  to  the  people  should  relate  to  the  future.  It 
might  be  a  denunciation  of  past  sins,  or  an  exhortation 
respecting  present  conduct,  quite  as  naturally  as  a 
prediction  of  what  was  coming.  And  in  the  Acts  and 
Pauline  Epistles  the  idea  of  a  prophet  remains  much 
the  same.  He  is  one  to  whom  has  been  granted  special 
insight  into  God's  counsels,  and  who  communicates 
these  mysteries  to  others.     Both  in  the  Jewish  and 

5 


66  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

primitive  Christian  dispensations,  the  prophets  are  the 
means  of  communication  between  God  and  His  Church. 
Eight  persons  are  mentioned  by  name  in  the  Acts 
of  the  Apostles  as  exercising  this  gift  of  prophecy : 
Agabus,  Barnabas,  Symeon  called  Niger,  Lucius  of 
Cyrene,  Manaen  the  foster-brother  of  Herod  the 
tetrarch,  Judas,  Silas,  and  St.  Paul  himself.  On  certain 
occasions  the  Divine  communication  made  to  them  by 
the  Spirit  included  a  knowledge  of  the  future ;  as  when 
Agabus  foretold  the  great  famine  (xi.  28)  and  the 
imprisonment  of  St.  Paul  (xxi.  11),  and  when  St.  Paul 
told  that  the  Holy  Spirit  testified  to  him  in  every  city, 
that  bonds  and  afflictions  awaited  him  at  Jerusalem 
(xx.  23).  But  this  is  the  exception  rather  than  the 
rule.  It  is  in  their  character  of  prophets  that  Judas 
and  Silas  exhort  and  confirm  the  brethren.  And, 
what  is  of  special  interest  in  reference  to  the  prophecies 
uttered  over  Timothy,  we  find  a  group  of  prophets 
having  special  influence  in  the  selection  and  ordination 
of  Apostolic  evangelists.  '*And  as  they  ministered  to 
the  Lord,  and  fasted,  the  Holy  Ghost  said.  Separate  Me 
Barnabas  and  Saul,  for  the  work  whereunto  I  have 
called  them.  Then  when  they  had  fasted  and  prayed 
and  laid  their  hands  on  them,  they  sent  them  away  " 
(xiii.  2,  3). 

We  see,  therefore,  that  these  New  Testament  prophets 
were  not  a  regularly  constituted  order,  like  apostles, 
with  whom  they  are  joined  both  in  the  First  Epistle  to 
the  Corinthians  (xii.  28)  and  in  that  to  the  Ephesians 
(iv.  11).  Yet  they  have  this  in  common  with  apostles, 
that  the  work  of  both  lies  rather  in  founding  Churches 
than  in  governing  them.  They  have  to  convert  and 
edify  rather  than  to  rule.  They  might  or  might  not 
be  apostles  or  presbyters  as  well  as  prophets ;  but  as 


i.  I8-20.]        THE  PROPHECIES  ON  TIMOTHY,  67 

prophets  they  were  men  or  women  (such  as  the 
daughters  of  PhiHp)  on  whom  a  special  gift  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  had  been  conferred :  and  this  gift  enabled  them 
to  understand  and  expound  Divine  mysteries  with 
inspired  authority,  and  at  times  also  to  foretell  the 
future. 

So  long  as  we  bear  these  characteristics  in  mind,  it 
matters  little  how  we  answer  the  question  as  to  who 
it  was  that  uttered  the  prophecies  over  Timothy  at  the 
time  of  his  ordination.  It  may  have  been  St.  Paul  and 
the  presbyters  who  laid  their  hands  upon  him,  and  who 
on  this  occasion  at  any  rate  were  endowed  with  the 
spirit  of  prophecy.  Or  it  may  have  been  that  besides 
the  presbyters  there  were  prophets  also  present,  who, 
at  this  solemn  ceremony,  exercised  their  gift  of  inspira- 
tion. The  former  seems  more  probable.  It  is  clear 
from  chap.  iv.  14,  that  prophecy  and  imposition  of 
hands  were  two  concomitant  acts  by  means  of  which 
spiritual  grace  was  bestowed  upon  Timothy ;  and  it  is 
more  reasonable  to  suppo.se  that  these  two  instrumental 
acts  were  performed  by  the  same  group  of  persons, 
than  that  one  group  prophesied,  while  another  laid  their 
hands  on  the  young  minister's  head. 

This  gift  of  prophecy,  St.  Paul  tells  the  Corinthians 
(l  Cor.  xiv.),  was  one  specially  to  be  desired  ;  and 
evidently  it  was  by  no  means  a  rare  one  in  the  primitive 
Church.  As  we  might  expect,  it  was  most  frequently 
exercised  in  the  public  services  of  the  congregation. 
"  When  ye  come  together,  each  one  hath  a  psalm,  hath 
a  teaching,  hath  a  revelation,  hath  a  tongue,  hath  an 
interpretation.  .  .  .  Let  the  prophets  speak  by  two  or 
three,  and  let  the  others  discern.  But  if  a  revelation 
be  made  to  another  sitting  by,  let  the  first  keep  silence. 
For  ye  all  can  prophesy  one  by  one^  that  all  may  learn 


68  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY, 

and  all  may  be  comforted  ;  and  the  spirits  of  the  pro- 
phets are  subject  to  the  prophets."  The  chief  object  of 
the  gift,  therefore,  was  instruction  and  consolation,  for 
the  conversion  of  unbelievers  (24,  25),  and  for  the 
building  up  of  the  faithful. 

But  we  shall  probably  be  right  in  making  a  distinc- 
tion between  the  prophesying  which  frequently  took 
place  in  the  first  Christian  congregations,  and  those 
special  interventions  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of  which  we 
read  occasionally.  In  these  latter  cases  it  is  not  so 
much  spiritual  instruction  in  an  inspired  form  that  is 
communicated,  as  a  revelation  of  God's  will  with  regard 
to  some  particular  course  of  action.  Such  was  the 
case  when  Paul  and  Silas  were  **  forbidden  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  to  speak  the  word  in  Asia,"  and  when  ''they 
assayed  to  go  into  Bithynia,  and  the  Spirit  of  Jesus 
suffered  them  not : "  or  when  on  his  voyage  to  Rome 
Paul  was  assured  that  he  would  stand  before  Caesar, 
and  that  God  had  given  him  the  lives  of  all  those  who 
sailed  with  him.* 

Some  have  supposed  that  the  Revelation  of  St.  John 
was  intended  to  mark  the  close  of  New  Testament 
prophecy  and  to  protect  the  Church  against  unwarrant- 
able attempts  at  prophecy  until  the  return  of  Christ  to 
judge  the  world.  This  view  would  be  more  probable 
if  the  later  date  for  the  Apocalypse  could  be  established. 
But  if,  as  is  far  more  probable,  the  Revelation  was 
written  c.  a.  d.  6Zy  it  is  hardly  likely  that  St.  John, 
during  the  lifetime  of  Apostles,  would  think  of  taking 
any  such  decisive  step.  In  his  First  Epistle,  written 
probably  fifteen  or  twenty  years  after  the  Revelation, 
he   gives   a   test   for    distinguishing    true    from    false 

*  Acts  xvi.  6,  7,  xxvii.  24  ;  comp.  xviii.  9,  xx,  23,  xxi.  4,  1 1,  xxii. 
17—21. 


i.i8-2o.]         THE  PROPHECIES  ON  TIMOTHY.  69 

prophets  (iv.   I — 4)  ;  and  this  he  would  not  have  done, 
if  he  had  believed  that  all  true  prophecy  had  ceased. 

In  the  newly  discovered  "  Doctrine  of  the  Twelve 
Apostles  "  we  find  prophets  among  the  ministers  of  the 
Church,  just  as  in  the  Epistles  to  the  Corinthians, 
Ephesians,  and  Philippians,  The  date  of  this  interest- 
ing treatise  has  yet  to  be  ascertained  ;  but  it  seems  to 
belong  to  the  period  between  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul 
and  those  of  Ignatius.  We  may  safely  place  it  between 
the  writings  of  St=  Paul  and  those  of  Justin  Martyr. 
In  the  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  (l  Cor.  xii.  28)  we 
have  "  First  apostles,  secondly  prophets,  thirdly 
teachers,  then  "  those  who  had  special  gifts,  such  as 
heaUng  or  speaking  with  tongues.  In  Ephes.  iv.  1 1  we 
are  told  that  Christ  "  gave  some  to  be  apostles  ;  and 
some  evangelists ;  and  some,  pastors  and  teachers." 
The  Epistle  to  the  Philippians  is  addressed  "  to  all  the 
saints  in  Christ  Jesus  which  are  at  Philippi,  with  the 
bishops  and  deacons,"  where  the  plural  shows  that 
^'  bishop  "  cannot  be  used  in  the  later  diocesan  sense  ; 
otherwise  there  would  be  only  one  bishop  at  Philippi. 
Prophets,  therefore,  in  St.  Paul's  time  are  a  common  and 
important  branch  of  the  ministry.  They  rank  next  to 
apostles,  and  a  single  congregation  may  possess  several 
of  them.  In  Ignatius  and  later  writers  the  ministers  who 
are  so  conspicuous  in  the  Acts  and  in  St.  Paul's  Epistles 
disappear,  and  their  place  is  taken  by  other  ministers 
whose  offices,  at  an}^  rate  in  their  later  forms,  are  scarcely 
found  in  the  New  Testament  at  all.  These  are  the 
bishops,  presbyters,  and  deacons ;  to  whom  were  soon 
added  a  number  of  subordinate  officials,  such  as  readers, 
exorcists,  and  the  like.  The  ministry,  as  we  find  it  in 
the  "  Doctrine  of  the  Twelve  Apostles,"  is  in  a  state  of 
transition  from  the  Apostolic  to  the  latter  stage.     As  in 


70  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

the  time  of  St.  Paul  we  have  both  itinerant  and  local 
ministers  ;  the  itinerant  ministers  being  chiefly  apostles 
and  prophets,  whose  functions  do  not  seem  to  be 
marked  off  from  one  another  very  distinctly ;  and  the 
local  ministry  consisting  of  two  orders  only,  bishops 
and  deacons,  as  in  the  address  to  the  Church  of  Philippi. 
When  we  reach  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius  and  other 
documents  of  a  date  later  than  a.d.  no,  we  lose 
distinct  traces  of  these  itinerant  apostles  and  prophets. 
The  title  *' Apostle"  is  becoming  confined  to  St.  Paul 
and  the  Twelve,  and  the  title  of  ''  Prophet  "  to  the  Old 
Testament  prophets. 

The  gradual  cessation  or  discredit  of  the  function 
of  the  Christian  prophet  is  thoroughly  intelligible. 
Possibly  the  spiritual  gift  which  rendered  it  possible 
was  withdrawn  from  the  Church.  In  any  case  the 
extravagances  of  enthusiasts  who  deluded  themselves 
into  the  belief  that  they  possessed  the  gift,  or  of 
impostors  who  deliberately  assumed  it,  would  bring 
the  office  into  suspicion  and  disrepute.  Such  things 
were  possible  even  in  Apostohc  times,  for  both  St. 
Paul  and  St.  John  give  cautions  about  it,  and  directions 
for  dealing  with  the  abuse  and  the  false  assumption  of 
prophecy.  In  the  next  century  the  eccentric  delusions 
of  Montanus  and  his  followers,  and  their  vehement 
attempts  to  force  their  supposed  revelations  upon  the 
whole  Church,  completed  the  discredit  of  all  profession 
to  prophetical  power.  This  discredit  has  been  intensi- 
fied from  time  to  time  whenever  such  professions  have 
been  renewed  ;  as,  for  example,  by  the  extravagances 
of  the  Zwickau  Prophets  or  Abecedarians  in  Luther's 
time,  or  of  the  Irvingites  in  our  own  day.  Since  the 
death  of  St.  John  and  the  close  of  the  Canon,  Christians 
have  sought  for  illumination   in  the  written  word  of 


i.  18-20.]         THE  PROPHECIES  ON  TIMOTHY,  71 

Scripture  rather  than  in  the  utterances  of  proj  hets. 
It  is  there  that  each  one  of  us  may  find  "  the  prophecies 
that  went  before  on  "  us,  exhorting  us  and  enabling  us 
to  "war  the  good  warfare,  holding  faith  and  a  good 
conscience."  There  will  always  be  those  who  crave 
for  something  more  definite  and  personal ;  who  long 
for,  and  perhaps  create  for  themselves  and  believe  m, 
some  living  authority  to  whom  they  can  perpetually 
appeal.  Scripture  seems  to  them  unsatisfying,  and 
they  erect  for  themselves  an  infallible  pope,  or  a  spiritual 
director,  whose  word  is  to  be  to  them  as  the  inspired 
utterances  of  a  prophet.  But  we  have  to  fall  back  on 
our  own  consciences  at  last :  and  whether  we  take 
Scripture  or  some  other  authority  as  our  infallible 
guide,  the  responsibility  of  the  choice  still  rests  with 
ourselves.  If  a  man  will  not  hear  Christ  and  His 
Apostles,  neither  will  he  be  persuaded  though  a  prophet 
was  granted  to  him.  If  we  believe  not  their  writings, 
how  shall  we  believe  his  words  ? 


CHAPTER   VII. 

THE  PUNISHMENT  OF  HYMENS  US  AND  ALEX- 
ANDER.-DELIVERING  TO  SATAN  AN  EXCEP- 
TIONAL INSTRUMENT  OF  PURIFICATION— THE 
PERSONALITY  OF  SATAN 

"  Holding  faith  and  a  good  conscience ;  which  some  having  thrust 
from  them  made  shipwreck  :  of  whom  is  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander; 
whom  I  delivered  unto  Satan,  that  they  might  be  taught  not  to 
blaspheme." — I  Tim.  i.  19,  20. 

IN  the  preceding  discourse  one  of  the  special  chart's- 
mata  which  distinguish  the  Church  of  the  Apostolic 
age  was  considered, — the  gift  of  prophecy.  It  seems 
to  have  been  an  exceptional  boon  to  enable  the  first 
Christians  to  perform  very  exceptional  work.  On 
the  present  occasion  we  have  to  consider  a  very 
different  subject — the  heavy  penalty  inflicted  on  two 
grievous  offenders.  This  again  would  seem  to  be 
something  exceptional.  And  the  special  gift  and  the 
special  punishment  have  this  much  in  common,  that 
both  of  them  were  extraordinary  means  for  promoting 
and  preserving  the  holmess  of  the  Church.  The  one 
existed  for  the  edification,  the  other  for  the  purification, 
of  the  members  of  the  Christian  community. 

The  necessity  of  strict  discipline  both  for  the  indivi- 
dual and  for  the  community  had  been  declared  by 
Christ  from  the  outset.  The  eye  that  caused  offence 
was  to  be  plucked  out,  the   hand   and   the   foot   that 


PUNISHMENT  OF  HYMEN.EUS  AND  ALEXANDER.    73 

caused  offence  were  to  be  cut  off,  and  the  hardened 
offender  who  refused  to  listen  to  the  solemn  remon- 
strances of  the  congregation  was  to  be  treated  as  a 
heathen  and  an  outcast.  The  experience  of  the 
primitive  Church  had  proved  the  wisdom  of  this.  The 
f-dl  of  Judas  had  shown  that  the  Apostolic  band  itself 
was  not  secure  from  evil  of  the  very  worst  kind.  The 
parent  Church  of  Jerusalem  was  no  sooner  founded 
than  a  dark  stain  was  brought  upon  it  by  the  conduct 
of  two  of  its  members.  In  the  very  first  glow  of 
its  youthful  enthusiasm  Ananias  and  Sapphira  con- 
spired together  to  pervert  the  general  unselfishness 
to  their  own  selfish  end,  by  attempting  to  gain  the 
credit  for  equal  generosity  with  the  rest,  while  keeping 
back  something  for  themselves.  The  Church  of 
Corinth  was  scarcely  five  years  old,  and  the  Apostle 
had  been  absent  from  it  only  about  three  years,  when 
he  learnt  that  in  this  Christian  community,  the  first- 
fruits  of  the  heathen  world,  a  sin  which  even  the 
heathen  regarded  as  a  monstrous  pollution  had  been 
committed,  and  that  the  congregation  were  glorying 
in  it.  Christians  were  boasting  that  the  incestuous 
union  of  a  man  with  his  father's  wife  during  his 
father's  lifetime  was  a  splendid  illustration  of  Christian 
liberty.  No  stronger  proof  of  the  dangers  of  lax 
discipline  could  have  been  given.  In  the  verses  before 
us  we  have  instances  of  similar  peril  on  the  doctrinal 
side.  And  in  the  insolent  opposition  which  Diotrephes 
offered  to  St.  John  we  have  an  illustration  of  the 
dangers  of  insubordination.  If  the  Christian  Church 
was  to  be  saved  from  speedy  collapse,  strict  discipline 
in  morals,  in  doctrine,  and  in  government,  was  plainly 
necessary. 

The  punishment  of  the  incestuous  person  at  Corinth 


74  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

should  be  placed  side  by  side  with  the  punishment  of 
Hymenseus  and  Alexander,  as  recorded  here.  The 
two  cases  mutually  explain  one  another.  In  each  of 
them  there  occurs  the  remarkable  formula  of  delivering 
or  handing  over  to  Satan.  The  meaning  of  it  is  not 
indisputable,  and  in  the  main  two  views  are  held 
respecting  it.  Some  interpret  it  as  being  merely  a 
synonym  for  excommunication.  Others  maintain 
that  it  indicates  a  much  more  exceptional  penalty, 
which  might  or  might  not  accompany  excommunication. 

1.  On  the  one  hand  it  is  argued  that  the  expression 
**  deliver  unto  Satan  "  is  a  very  intelligible  periphrasis 
for  '^excommunicate."  Excommunication  involved 
**  exclusion  from  all  Christian  fellowship,  and  conse- 
quently banishment  to  the  society  of  those  among 
whom  Satan  dwelt,  and  from  which  the  offender  had 
publicly  severed  himself."  *  It  is  admitted  that  '*  hand- 
ing over  to  Satan"  is  strong  language  to  use  in  order 
to  express  ejection  from  the  congi  egation  and  exclusion 
from  all  acts  of  worship,  but  it  is  thought  that  the 
acuteness  of  the  crisis  makes  the  strength  of  language 
intelligible. 

2.  But  the  strength  of  language  needs  no  apology, 
if  the  "  delivering  unto  Satan "  means  something  ex- 
traordinary, over  and  above  excommunication.  This, 
therefore,  is  an  advantage  which  the  second  mode  of 
interpreting  the  expression  has  at  the  outset.  Ex- 
communication was  a  punishment  which  the  congre- 
gation itself  could  inflict;  but  this  handing  over  to 
Satan  was  an  Apostolic  act,  to  accomplish  which  the 
community  without  the  Apostle  had  no  power.  It 
was  a    supernatural    infliction   of  bodily  infirmity,  or 

*  Pr.  Pavid  Brown  in  SchaflPs  Popular  Commentary,  iii.,  p.  i8o. 


PUJ^ISHMENT  OP  HYMENMUS  AND  ALEXANDER.    7$ 

disease,  or  death,  as  a  penalty  for  grievous  sin.  We 
know  this  in  the  cases  of  Ananias  and  Sapphira  and 
of  Elymas.  The  incestuous  person  at  Corinth  is  pro- 
bably another  instance  :  for  **  the  destruction  of  the 
flesh  "  seems  to  mean  some  painful  malady  inflicted  on 
that  part  of  his  nature  which  had  been  the  instrument 
of  his  fall,  in  order  that  by  its  chastisement  the  higher 
part  of  his  nature  might  be  saved.  And,  if  this  be 
correct,  then  we  seem  to  be  justified  in  assuming  the 
same  respecting  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander.  For 
although  nothing  is  said  in  their  case  respecting  ''  the 
destruction  of  the  flesh,"  yet  the  expression  "  that 
they  may  be  taught  not  to  blaspheme,"  implies  some- 
thing of  a  similar  kind.  The  word  for  "  taught " 
(TraLhevOcocn)  implies  discipline  and  chastisement, 
sometimes  in  Classical  Greek,  frequently  in  the  New 
Testament,  a  meaning  which  the  word  "  teach "  also 
not  unfrequently  has  in  English  (Judges  viii.  1 6).  In 
illustration  of  this  it  is  sufficient  to  point  to  the  passage 
in  Heb.  xii.,  in  which  the  writer  insists  that  "  whom  the 
Lord  loveth  He  chasteneth."  Throughout  the  section 
this  very  word  (TraiSeveLv)  and  its  cognate  (iraiheia)  are 
used.*  It  is,  therefore,  scarcely  doubtful  that  St.  Paul 
dehvered  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander  to  Satan,  in  order 
that  Satan  might  have  power  to  afflict  their  bodies 
(just  as  he  was  allowed  power  over  the  body  of  Job), 
with  a  view  to  their  spiritual  amelioration.  This 
personal  suffering,  following  close  upon  their  sin  and 
declared  by  the  Apostle  to  be  a  punishment  for  it, 
would  teach  them  to  abandon  it.  St.  Paul  himself,  as 
he  has  just  told  us,  had  been  a  blasphemer  and  by  a 
supernatural  visitation  had  been  converted  :  why  should 

*  Heb.  xii.  5,  1 1 ;  comp.  i  Cor.  xi.  32 ;  2  Cor.  vi.  9 ;  2  Tim.  ii.  25 ; 
Luke  xxiii.  16,  22  :  Soph.,  Ajax  595;  Xen.,  Mem,  I.  iii,  5. 


76  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHV. 

not  these  two  follow  in  both  respects  in  his  steps? 
Satan's  willingness  to  co-operate  in  such  measures 
need  not  surprise  us.  He  is  always  ready  to  inflict 
suffering ;  and  the  fact  that  suffering  sometimes  draws 
the  sufferer  away  from  him  and  nearer  to  God,  do'es 
not  deter  him  from  inflicting  it.  He  knows  well  that 
suffering  not  unfrequently  has  the  very  opposite  effect. 
It  hardens  and  exasperates  some  men,  while  it  humbles 
and  purifies  others.  It  makes  one  man  say  *'  I  abhor 
myself,  and  repent  in  dust  and  ashes."  It  makes 
another  will  to  "  renounce  God  and  die."  Satan  hoped 
in  Job's  case  to  be  able  to  provoke  him  to  *^  renounce 
God  to  His  face."  In  the  case  of  these  two  blasphemers 
he  would  hope  to  induce  them  to  blaspheme  all  the 
more. 

We  may  pass  by  the  question,  "  In  what  way  did* 
Hymenseus  and  Alexander  blaspheme  ? "  We  can 
only  conjecture  that  it  was  by  publicly  opposing  some 
article  of  the  Christian  faith.  But  conjectures  without 
evidence  are  not  very  profitable.  If  we  were  certain 
that  the  Hymenaeus  here  mentioned  with  Alexander  is 
identical  with  the  one  who  is  condemned  with  Philetus 
in  2  Tim.  ii.  i8  for  virtually  denying  the  resurrection, 
we  should  have  some  evidence.  But  this  identification, 
although  probable,  is  not  certain.  Still  less  certain  is 
the  identification  of  the  Alexander  condemned  here  with 
*' Alexander  the  copper-smith,"  who  in  2  Tim.  iv.  14 
is  said  to  have  done  the  Apostle  much  evil.  But  none 
of  these  questions  is  of  great  moment.  What  is  of 
importance  to  notice  is  the  Apostolic  sentence  upon 
the  two  blasphemers.  And  in  it  we  have  to  notice 
four  points,  (i)  It  is  almost  certainly  not  identical 
with  excommunication  by  the  congregation,  although  it 
very  probably  was  accompanied  by  this  other  penalty. 


THE  PERSONALITY  OF  SATAN.  77 

(2)  It  is  of  a  very  extraordinary  character,  being  a 
handing  over  into  the  power  of  the  evil  one.  (3)  Its 
object  is  the  reformation  of  the  offenders,  while  at  the 
same  time  (4)  it  serves  as  a  warning  to  others,  lest 
they  by  similar  offences  should  suffer  so  awful  a 
punishment.  To  all  alike  it  brought  home  the  serious 
nature  of  such  sins.  Even  at  the  cost  of  cutting  of! 
the  right  hand,  or  plucking  out  the  right  eye,  the 
Christian  community  must  be  kept  pure  in  doctrine 
as  in  life. 

These  two  passages, — the  one  before  us,  and  the 
one  respecting  the  case  of  incest  at  Corinth, — are 
conclusive  as  to  St.  Paul's  teaching  respecting  the 
existence  and  personality  of  the  devil.  They  are 
supported  and  illustrated  by  a  number  of  other 
passages  in  his  writings ;  as  when  he  tells  the  Thes- 
salonians  that  "Satan  hindered"  his  work,  or  warns 
the  Corinthians  that  '^even  Satan  fashioneth  himself 
into  an  angel  of  light,"  and  tells  them  that  his  own 
sore  trouble  in  the  flesh  was,  like  Job's,  "  a  messenger 
of  Satan  to  buffet "  him..  Not  less  clear  is  the  teaching 
of  St.  Peter  and  St.  John  in  Epistles  which,  with  those 
of  St.  Paul  to  the  Corinthians,  are  among  the  best 
authenticated  works  in  ancient  literature.  "  Your 
adversary  the  devil  as  a  roaring  lion,  walketh  about, 
seeking  whom  he  may  devour,"  says  the  one  :  "  He 
that  doeth  sin  is  of  the  devil ;  for  the  devil  sinneth 
from  the  beginning,"  says  the  other.  And,  if  we  need 
higher  authority,  there  is  the  declaration  of  Christ  to 
the  malignant  and  unbelieving  Jews.  "  Ye  are  of  your 
father  the  devil,  and  the  lusts  of  your  father  it  is  your 
will  to  do.  He  was  a  murderer  from  the  beginning, 
and  stood  not  in  the  truth,  because  there  is  no  truth 
in  him.     When  he  speaketh  a  lie,  he  speaketh  of  his 


78  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 

own  :  for  he  is  a  liar,  and  the  father  thereof."  *  With 
regard  to  this  last  passage,  those  who  deny  the 
personal  existence  of  Satan  must  maintain  either 
(i)  that  the  Evangelist  here  attributes  to  Christ  words 
which  He  never  used  ;  or  (2)  that  Christ  was  willing 
to  make  use  of  a  monstrous  superstition  in  order  to 
denounce  his  opponents  with  emphasis ;  or  (3)  that 
He  Himself  erroneously  believed  in  the  existence  of 
a  being  who  was  a  mere  figment  of  an  unenlightened 
imagination  :  in  other  words,  that  "  the  Son  of  God 
was  manifested  that  He  might  destroy  the  works  of  the 
devil,"  when  all  the  while  there  was  no  devil  and  no 
works  of  his  to  be  destroyed. 

The  first  of  these  views  cuts  at  the  root  of  all  trust 
in  the  Gospels  as  historical  documents.  Words  which 
imply  that  Satan  is  a  person  are  attributed  to  Christ 
by  the  Synoptists  no  less  than  by  St.  John ;  and  if  the 
Evangelists  are  not  to  be  believed  in  their  report  of 
Christ's  sayings  on  this  topic,  what  security  have  we 
that  they  are  to  be  believed  as  to  their  reports  of  the 
rest  of  His  teaching  ;  or  indeed  as  to  anything  which 
they  narrate  ?  Again,  how  are  we  to  account  for  the 
very  strong  statements  made  by  the  Apostles  them- 
selves respecting  the  evil  one,  if  they  had  never  heard 
anything  of  the  kind  from  Christ. 

The  second  view  has  been  adopted  by  Schleiermacher, 
who  thinks  that  Christ  accommodated  His  teaching  to 
the  ideas  then  prevalent  among  the  Jews  respecting 
Satan  without  sharing  them  Himself.  He  knew  that 
Satan  was  a  mere  personification  of  the  moral  evil 
which  every  man  finds  in  his  own  nature  and  in  that 
of  his  fellow-men  :  but  the  Jews  believed  in  the  per- 

*  I  Thess.  ii.  i8;  2  Cor.  xi.  14,  xii.  7;  i  Pet.  v.  8  ;  i  John  iii.  8; 
John  viii.  44. 


Tim  PERSONALITY  OF  SATAN,  79 

sonality  of  this  evil  principle,  and  He  acquiesced  in  the 
belief,  not  as  being  true,  but  as  offering  no  fundamental 
opposition  to  His  teaching.  But  is  this  consistent  with 
the  truthfulness  of  Christ  ?  If  a  personal  devil  is  an 
empty  superstition,  He  went  out  of  his  way  to  confirm 
men  in  their  belief  in  it.  Why  teach  that  the  enemy 
who  sowed  the  tares  is  the  devil  ?  Why  interpret  the 
birds  that  snatch  away  the  freshly  sown  seed  as  Satan  ? 
It  would  have  been  so  easy  in  each  case  to  have  spoken 
of  impersonal  temptations.  Again,  what  motive  can 
Christ  have  had  for  telling  His  Apostles  (not  the 
ignorant  and  superstitious  multitude),  that  He  Him- 
self had  endured  the  repeated  solicitations  of  a  personal 
tempter,  who  had  conversed  and  argued  with  Him  ? 

Those  who,  like  Strauss  and  Renan,  believe  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  to  have  been  a  mere  man,  would  naturally 
adopt  the  third  view.  In  believing  in  the  personality 
of  Satan  Jesus  merely  shared  the  superstitions  of  His 
age.  To  all  those  who  wish  to  discuss  with  him 
whether  we  are  still  Christians,  Strauss  declares  that 
**  the  belief  in  a  devil  is  one  of  the  most  hideous  sides 
of  the  ancient  Christian  faith,"  and  that  "  the  extent 
to  which  this  dangerous  delusion  still  controls  men's 
ideas  or  has  been  banished  from  them  is  the  very  thing 
to  regard  as  a  measure  of  culture."  But  at  the  same 
time  he  admits  that  '^  to  remove  so  fundamental  a  stone 
is  dangerous  for  the  whole  edifice  of  the  Christian 
faith.  It  was  the  young  Goethe  who  remarked  against 
Bahrdt  that  if  ever  an  idea  was  biblical,  this  one  [of 
the  existence  of  a  personal  Satan]  was  such."*  And 
elsewhere  Strauss  declares  that  the  conception  of  th^ 
Messiah  and  His  kingdom  without  the  antithesis  of  an 

*  Strauss,  Der  alte  und  der  neui  Giaube,  p.  22, 


§o  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   70   TIMOTHY. 

infernal  kingdom  with  a  personal  chief  is  as  impossible 
as  that  of  North  pole  without  a  South  pole.  * 

To  refuse  to  believe  in  an  evil  power  external  to 
ourselves  is  to  believe  that  human  nature  itself  is 
diabolical.  Whence  come  the  devilish  thoughts  that 
vex  us  even  at  the  most  sacred  and  solemn  moments  ? 
If  they  do  not  come  from  the  evil  one  and  his  myrmi- 
dons, they  come  from  ourselves  : — they  are  our  own 
offspring.  Such  a  belief  might  well  drive  us  to  despair. 
So  far  from  being  a  "  hideous"  element  in  the  Christian 
faith,  the  belief  in  a  power,  "  not  ourselves^  that  makes 
for"  wickedness,  is  a  most  consoling  one.  It  has  been 
said  that,  if  there  were  no  God,  we  should  have  to 
invent  one :  and  with  almost  equal  truth  we  might  say 
that,  if  there  were  no  devil,  we  should  have  to  invent 
one.  Without  a  belief  in  God  bad  men  would  have 
little  to  induce  them  to  conquer  their  evil  passions. 
Without  a  belief  in  a  devil  good  men  would  have  little 
hope  of  ever  being  able  to  do  so. 

The  passage  before  us  supplies  us  with  another 
consoling  thought  with  regard  to  this  terrible  adver- 
sary, who  is  always  invisibly  plotting  against  us.  It 
is  often  for  our  own  good  that  God  allows  him  to  have 
an  advantage  over  us.  He  is  permitted  to  inflict  loss 
upon  us  through  our  persons  and  our  property,  as  in 
the  case  of  Job,  and  the  woman  whom  he  bowed  down 
for  eighteen  years,  in  order  to  chasten  us  and  teach 
us  that  *'we  have  not  here  an  abiding  city."  And  he 
is  permitted  even  to  lead  us  into  sin,  in  order  to  save 
us  from  spiritual  pride,  and  to  convince  us  that  apart 
from  Christ  and  in  our  own  strength  we  can  do 
nothing.     These  are  not  Satan's  motives,  but  they  are 

*  Herzog  und  Plitt,  XV,  p.  361. 


THE  PERSONALITY  OF  SATAN.  8l 

God's  motives  in  allowing  him  to  be  ^'the  ruler  of 
this  world,"  and  to  have  much  power  over  human 
affairs.  Satan  inflicts  suffering  from  love  of  inflicting 
it,  and  leads  into  sin  from  love  of  sin  :  but  God  knows 
how  to  bring  good  out  of  evil  by  making  the  evil  one 
frustrate  his  own  wiles.  The  devil  malignantly  afflicts 
souls  that  come  within  his  power;  but  the  affliction 
leads  to  those  souls  being  "  saved  in  the  day  of  the 
Lord."  It  had  that  blessed  effect  in  the  case  of  the 
incestuous  person  at  Corinth.  Whether  the  same  is 
true  of  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander,  there  is  nothing 
in  Scripture  to  tell  us.  It  is  for  us  to  take  care  that 
in  our  case  the  chastisements  which  inevitably  follow 
upon  sin  do  not  drive  us  further  and  further  into  it, 
but  teach  us  to  sin  no  more. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

ELEMENTS  OF  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP;  INTERCESSORY 
PRAYER  AND  THANKSGIVING.— THE  SOLIDARITY 
OF  CHRISTENDOM  AND  OF  THE  HUMAN  RACE. 

"  I  2xhort,  iherefore,  first  of  all,  that  supplications,  prayers,  inter- 
cessions, thanksgivings,  be  made  for  all  men  :  for  kings  and  all  that 
are  in  high  places ;  that  we  may  lead  a  tranquil  and  quiet  life  in  all 
godliness  and  gravity  " — I  Tim.  ii.  i. 

THE  first  chapter  of  the  Epistle  is  more  or  less 
introductory.  It  repeats  what  St.  Paul  had 
already  said  to  his  beloved  disciple  by  word  of  mouth, 
on  the  subject  of  Christian  doctrine,  and  the  necessity 
of  keeping  it  pure.  It  makes  a  digression  respecting 
the  Apostle's  own  conversion.  It  reminds  Timothy  of 
the  hopeful  prophecies  uttered  over  him  at  his  ordina- 
tion ;  and  it  points  out  the  terrible  consequences  of 
driving  conscience  from  the  helm  and  placing  oneself 
in  antagonism  to  the  Almighty.  In  this  second  chapter 
St.  Paul  goes  on  to  mention  in  order  the  subjects  which 
led  to  the  writing  of  the  letter;  and  the  very  first 
exhortation  which  he  has  to  give  is  that  respecting 
Christian  worship  and  the  duty  of  intercessory  prayer 
and  thanksgiving. 

There  are  two  things  very  worthy  of  remark  in  the 
treatment  of  the  subject  of  worship  in  the  Pastoral 
Epistles.  First,  these  letters  bring  before  us  a  more 
developed  form  of  worship  than  we  find  indicated  in 


ii.  I.]         ELEMENTS  OF  CHRISTIAN   WORSHIP,  83 

the  earlier  writings  of  St.  Paul.  It  is  still  very  primi- 
tive, but  it  has  grown.  And  this  is  exactly  what  we 
ought  to  expect,  especially  when  we  remember  how 
rapidly  the  Christian  Church  developed  its  powers 
during  the  first  century  and  a  half.  Secondly,  the 
indications  of  this  more  developed  form  of  worship 
occur  only  in  the  letters  to  Timothy,  which  deal  with 
the  condition  of  things  in  the  Church  of  Ephesus,  a 
Church  which  had  already  been  founded  for  a  con- 
siderable time,  and  was  in  a  comparatively  advanced 
stage  of  organization.  Hence  we  are  not  surprised 
to  find  in  these  two  Epistles  fragments  of  what  appear 
to  be  primitive  liturgical  forms.  In  the  First  Epistle 
we  have  two  grand  doxologies,  which  may  be  the 
outcome  of  the  Apostle's  devotion  at  the  moment,  but 
are  quite  as  likely  to  be  quotations  of  formulas  well 
known  to  Timothy  (i.  17;  vi.  15,  16).  Between  these 
two  we  have  what  looks  like  a  portion  of  a  hymn  in 
praise  of  Jesus  Christ,  suitable  for  singing  antiphonally 
(iii.  16 ;  comp.  Pliny,  Epp.  x.  96)  :  and  also  what  may  be 
a  baptismal  exhortation  (vi.  12).  In  the  Second  Epistle 
we  have  traces  of  another  liturgical  formula  (ii.  1 1 — 13). 
St.  Paul  of  course  does  not  mean,  as  the  A.V. 
might  lead  us  to  suppose,  that  in  all  Christian  worship 
intercession  ought  to  come  first ;  still  less  that  interces- 
sion is  the  first  duty  of  a  Christian.  But  he  does 
place  it  first  among  those  subjects  about  which  he  has 
to  give  directions  in  this  Epistle.  He  makes  sure  that 
it  shall  not  be  forgotten  by  himself  in  writing  to  his 
delegate  at  Ephesus ;  and  he  wishes  to  make  sure  that 
it  shall  not  be  forgotten  by  Timothy  in  his  ministration. 
To  offer  prayers  and  thanksgivings  on  behalf  of  all 
men  is  a  duty  of  such  high  importance  that  the  Apostle 
places  it  first  among  the  topics  of  his  pastoral  charge. 


84  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY^ 

Was  it  a  duty  which  Timothy  and  the  congregation 
committed  to  his  care  had  been  neglecting,  or  were  in 
serious  danger  of  neglecting  ?  It  may  well  have  been 
so.  In  the  difficulties  of  the  overseer's  own  personal 
position,  and  in  the  varied  dangers  to  which  his  little 
flock  were  so  unceasingly  exposed,  the  claims  of 
others  upon  their  united  prayer  and  praise  may  some- 
times have  been  forgotten.  When  the  Apostle  had 
left  Timothy  to  take  his  place  for  a  time  in  Ephesus  he 
had  hoped  to  return  very  soon,  and  consequently  had 
given  him  only  brief  and  somewhat  hasty  directions  as 
to  his  course  of  action  during  his  absence.  He  had 
been  prevented  from  returning ;  and  there  was  a 
probability  that  Timothy  would  have  to  be  his  re- 
presentative for  an  indefinite  period.  Meanwhile  the 
difficulties  of  Timothy's  position  had  not  diminished. 
Many  of  his  flock  were  much  older  men  than  himself, 
and  some  of  them  had  been  elders  in  the  Church  of 
Ephesus  long  before  the  Apostle's  beloved  disciple  was 
placed  in  charge  of  them.  Some  of  the  leaders  in  the 
congregation  had  become  tainted  with  the  Gnostic 
errors  with  which  the  intellectual  atmosphere  of 
Ephesus  was  charged,  and  were  endeavouring  to  make 
compromise  and  confusion  between  heathen  lawless- 
ness and  Christian  liberty.  Besides  which,  there  was 
the  bitter  hostilit}^  of  the  Jews,  who  regarded  both 
Paul  and  Timothy  as  renegades  from  the  faith  of 
their  ancestors,  and  who  never  lost  an  opportunity  of 
thwarting  and  reviling  them.  Above  all  there  was  the 
ever-present  danger  of  heathenism,  which  confronted 
the  Christians  every  time  they  left  the  shelter  of  their 
own  houses.  In  the  city  which  counted  it  as  its  chief 
glory  that  it  was  the  "  Temple-keeper  of  the  great 
Artemis"  (Acts  xix.  35),  every  street   through  which 


ii.  I.]         ELEMENTS  OF  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP.  85 

the  Christians  walked,  and  every  heathen  house  which 
they  entered,  was  full  of  pagan  abominations ;  to  say 
nothing  of  the  magnificent  temples,  beautiful  groves, 
and  seductive  idolatrous  rites,  which  were  among  the 
main  features  that  attracted  such  motley  crowds  to 
Ephesus.  Amid  difficulties  and  perils  such  as  these, 
it  would  not  be  wonderful  if  Timothy  and  those  com- 
mitted  to  his  care  had  been  somewhat  oblivious  of  the 
fact  that  '^  behind  the  mountains  also  there  are  people  ; " 
that  beyond  the  narrow  limits  of  their  contracted 
horizon  there  were  interests  as  weighty  as  their  own 
— Christians  who  were  as  dear  to  God  as  themselves, 
whose  needs  were  as  great  as  their  own,  and  to  whom 
the  Lord  had  been  equally  gracious;  and  moreover 
countless  hosts  of  heathen,  who  also  were  God's 
children,  needing  His  help  and  receiving  His  blessings  ; 
for  all  of  whom,  as  well  as  for  themselves,  the  Church 
in  Ephesus  was  bound  to  offer  prayer  and  thanks- 
giving. 

But  there  is  no  need  to  assume  that  Timothy,  and 
those  committed  to  his  care,  had  been  specially  neglect- 
ful of  this  duty.  To  keep  clearly  in  view  our  responsi- 
bilities towards  the  whole  human  race,  or  even  towards 
the  whole  Church,  is  so  difficult  a  thing  for  all  of  us, 
that  the  prominent  place  which  St.  Paul  gives  to  the 
obligation  to  offer  prayers  and  thanksgivings  for  all 
men  is  quite  intelligible,  without  the  supposition  that 
the  disciple  whom  he  addresses  was  more  in  need  of 
such  a  charge  than  other  ministers  in  the  Churches 
under  St.  Paul's  care. 

The  Apostle  uses  three  different  words  for  prayer, 
the  second  of  which  is  a  general  term  and  covers  all 
kinds  of  prayer  to  God.  and  the  first  a  still  more 
general   term,    including   petitions  addressed    to  man. 


86  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

Either  of  the  first  two  would  embrace  the  third,  which 
indicates  a  bold  and  earnest  approach  to  the  Almighty 
to  implore  some  great  benefit.  None  of  the  three  words 
necessarily  means  intercession  in  the  sense  of  prayer 
on  behalf  of  others.  This  idea  comes  from  the  context. 
St.  Paul  says  plainly  that  it  is  prayers  and  thanks- 
givings "  for  all  men "  that  he  desires  to  have  made  : 
and  in  all  probability  he  did  not  carefully  distinguish 
in  his  mind  the  shades  of  meaning  which  are  proper 
to  the  three  terms  which  he  uses.  Whatever  various 
kinds  of  suppHcation  there  may  be  which  are  offered 
by  man  at  the  throne  of  grace,  he  urges  that  the  whole 
human  race  are  to  have  the  benefit  of  them.  Obviously, 
as  Chrysostom  long  ago  pointed  out,  we  cannot  limit 
the  Apostle's  "  all  men "  to  all  believers.  Directly  he 
enters  into  detail  he  mentions  ''  kings  and  all  that  are 
in  high  place  ; "  and  in  St.  Paul's  day  not  a  single  king, 
and  we  may  almost  say  not  a  single  person  in  high 
place,  was  a  believer.  The  scope  of  a  Christian's 
desires  and  gratitude,  when  he  appears  before  the  Lord, 
must  have  no  narrower  limit  than  that  which  embraces 
the  whole  human  race.  This  important  principle,  the 
Apostle  charges  his  representative,  must  be  exhibited 
in  the  public  worship  of  the  Church  in  Ephesus. 

The  solidarity  of  the  whole  body  of  Christians,  how- 
ever distant  from  one  another  in  space  and  time, 
however  different  from  one  another  in  nationality,  in 
discipline,  and  even  in  creed,  is  a  magnificent  fact,  of 
which  we  all  of  us  need  from  time  to  time  to  be 
reminded,  and  which,  even  when  we  are  reminded  of 
it,  we  find  it  somewhat  difficult  to  grasp.  Members  of 
sects  that  we  never  heard  of,  dwelling  in  remote  regions 
of  which  we  do  not  even  know  the  names,  are  never- 
theless united  to  us  by  the  eternal  ties  of  a  common 


ii.  I.]         ELEMENTS   OF  CHRISTIAN   WORSHIP.  87 

baptism  and  a  ccmmon  belief  in  God  and  in  Jesus 
Christ.  The  eastern  sectarian  in  the  wilds  of  Asia, 
and  the  western  sectarian  in  the  backwoods  of  North 
America,  are  members  of  Christ  and  our  brethren ;  and 
as  such  have  spiritual  interests  identical  with  our  own, 
for  which  it  is  not  only  our  duty  but  our  advantage 
to  pray.  '^  Whether  one  member  suffereth,  all  the 
members  suffer  with  it;  or  one  member  is  honoured, 
all  the  members  rejoice  with  it."  The  ties  which  bind 
Christians  to  one  another  are  at  once  so  subtle  and  so 
real,  that  it  is  impossible  for  one  Christian  to  remain 
unaffected  by  the  progress  or  retrogression  of  any 
other.  Therefore,  not  only  does  the  law  of  Christian 
charity  require  us  to  aid  all  our  fellow-Christians  by 
praying  for  them,  but  the  law  of  self-interest  leads  us 
to  do  so  also ;  for  their  advance  will  assuredly  help  us 
forward,  and  their  relapse  will  assuredly  keep  us  back. 
All  this  is  plain  matter  of  fact,  revealed  to  us  by  Christ 
and  His  apostles,  and  confirmed  by  our  own  experi- 
ence, so  far  as  our  feeble  powers  of  observation  are 
able  to  supply  a  test.  Nevertheless,  it  is  a  fact  of  such 
enormous  proportions  (even  without  taking  into  account 
our  close  relationship  with  those  who  have  passed 
away  from  this  world),  that  even  with  our  best  efforts 
we  fail  to  realize  it  in  its  immensity. 

What  shall  we  say,  then,  about  the  difficulty  of 
realizing  the  solidarity  of  the  whole  human  race  ?  For 
they  also  are  God's  offspring,  and  as  such  are  of  ci:e 
family  with  ourselves.  If  it  is  hard  to  remember  that 
the  welfare  of  the  humblest  member  of  a  remote  and 
obscure  community  in  Christendom  intimately  concerns 
ourselves,  how  shall  we  keep  in  view  the  fact  that  we 
have  both  interests  and  obligations  in  reference  to  the 
wildest  and  most  degraded  heathens  in  the  heart  of 


88  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

Africa  or  in  the  islands  of  the  Pacific  ?  Here  is  a  fact 
on  a  far  more  stupendous  scale ;  for  in  the  population 
of  the  globe,  those  who  are  not  even  in  name  Christians, 
outnumber  us  by  at  least  three  to  one.  And  yet  let  us 
never  forget  that  our  interest  in  these  countless  multi- 
tudes, whom  we  have  never  seen  and  never  shall  see 
in  this  life,  is  not  a  mere  graceful  sentiment  or  empty 
flourish  of  rhetoric,  but  a  sober  and  solid  fact.  The 
hackneyed  phrase,  "  a  man  and  a  brother,"  represents 
a  vital  truth.  Every  human  being  is  one  of  our 
brethren,  and,  whether  we  like  the  responsibiHty  or 
not,  we  are  still  our  *'  brother's  keeper."  In  our  keep- 
ing, to  a  very  real  extent,  lie  the  supreme  issues  of  his 
spiritual  life,  and  we  have  to  look  to  it  that  we  discharge 
our  trust  faithfully.  We  read  with  horror,  and  it  may 
be  with  compassion,  of  the  monstrous  outrages  com- 
mitted by  savage  chiefs  upon  their  subjects,  their  wives, 
or  their  enemies.  We  forget  that  the  guilt  of  these 
things  may  lie  partly  at  our  door,  because  we  have  not 
done  our  part  in  helping  forward  civilizing  influences 
which  would  have  prevented  such  horrors,  above  all 
because  we  have  not  prayed  as  we  ought  for  those  who 
commit  them.  There  are  few  of  us  who  have  not  some 
opportunities  of  giving  assistance  in  various  ways  to 
missionary  enterprise  and  humanizing  efforts.  But 
afl  of  us  can  at  least  pray  for  God's  blessing  upon  such 
things,  and  for  His  mercy  upon  those  who  are  in  need 
of  it.  Of  those  who,  having  nothing  else  to  give,  give 
their  struggles  after  holiness  and  their  prayers  for  their 
fellow-men,  the  blessed  commendation  stands  written, 
''  They  have  done  what  they  could." 

'*For  kings  and  all  that  are  in  high  place."  It  is 
quite  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  "kings"  here  means 
the  Roman   Emperors.      This  has  been  asserted,  and 


ii.  I.]         ELEMENTS  OF  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP.  89 

from  this  misinterpretation  has  been  deduced  the 
erroneous  conclusion  that  the  letter  must  have  been 
written  at  a  time  when  it  was  customary  for  the  Emperor 
to  associate  another  prince  with  him  in  the  empire,  with 
a  view  to  securing  the  succession.  As  Hadrian  was 
the  first  to  do  this,  and  that  near  to  the  close  of  his 
reign,  this  letter  (it  is  urged)  cannot  be  earlier  than 
A.D.  138.  But  this  interpretation  is  impossible,  for 
^'kings''  in  the  Greek  has  no  article.  Had  the  writer 
meant  the  two  reigning  Emperors,  whether  Hadrian 
and  Antoninus,  or  M.  Aurelius  and  Verus,  he  would 
inevitably  have  written  "for  the  kings  and  for  all  in 
high  place."  The  expression  "  for  kings,"  obviously 
means  "  for  monarchs  of  all  descriptions,"  including  the 
Roman  Emperor,  but  including  many  other  potentates 
also.  Such  persons,  as  having  the  heaviest  responsi- 
bilities and  the  greatest  power  of  doing  good  and  evil, 
have  an  especial  claim  upon  the  prayers  of  Christians. 
It  gives  us  a  striking  illustration  of  the  transforming 
powers  of  Christianity  when  we  think  of  St.  Paul  giving 
urgent  directions  that  among  the  persons  to  be  remem- 
bered first  in  the  intercessions  of  the  Church  are  Nero 
and  the  men  whom  he  put  *^  in  high  place,"  such  as 
Otho  and  Vitellius,  who  afterwards  became  Emperor : 
and  this,  too,  after  Nero's  peculiarly  cruel  and  wanton 
persecution  of  the  Christians  a.d.  64.  How  firmly  this 
beautiful  practice  became  established  among  Christians, 
is  shown  from  their  writings  in  the  second  and  third 
centuries.  Tertullian,  who  lived  through  the  reigns  of 
such  monsters  as  Commodus  and  Elagabalus,  who 
remembered  the  persecution  under  M.  Aurelius,  and 
witnessed  that  under  Septimius  Severus,  can  neverthe- 
less write  thus  of  the  Emperor  of  Rome  :  ''  A  Christian 
is   the  enemy  of  no  one,  least  of  all  of  the  Emperor, 


90  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

whom  he  knows  to  have  been  appointed  by  his  God, 
and  whom  he  therefore  of  necessity  loves,  and  rever- 
ences,  and  honours,   and  desires  his  well-being,   with 
that  of  the  whole  Roman  Empire,  so  long  as  the  world 
shall  stand ;  for  it  shall  last  as  long.     To  the  Emperor, 
therefore,  we  render  such  homage  as  is  lawful  for  us 
and  good  for  him,  as  the  human  being  who  comes  next 
to  God,  and  is  what  he  is  by  God's  decree,  and  to  God 
alone  is  inferior.  .  .  .  And  so  we  sacrifice  also  for  the 
well-being  of  the  Emperor ;  but  to  our  God   and  his ; 
but  in  the  way  that  God  has  ordained,  with  a  prayer 
that  is  pure.     For  God,  the  Creator  of  the  universe, 
has   no    need    of  odours  or  of  blood."  *     In   another 
passage     Tertullian     anticipates     the     objection     that 
Christians   pray   for   the   Emperor,   in  order  to   curry 
favour  with  the  Roman  government  and   thus  escape 
persecution.     He  says  that  the  heathen  have   only  to 
look   into  the  Scriptures,  which  to  Christians  are   the 
voice  of  God,  and  see  that  to  pray  for  their  enemies  and 
to  pray   for  those  in  authority  is  a  fundamental  rule 
with  Christians.     And  he  quotes  the  passage  before  us.f 
But  he  appears  to  misunderstand  the  concluding  words 
of  the   Apostle's    injunction, — "  that    we    may  lead    a 
tranquil   and  quiet   life   in  all  godliness  and   gravity." 
Tertullian  understands  this  as  a  reason  for  praying  for 
kings  and  rulers  ;  because  they  are  the  preservers  of 
the  public  peace,  and  any  disturbance  in  the  empire 
will  necessarily   afiect  the  Christians  as  well  as  other 
subjects, — which  is  giving  a  rather  narrow  and  selfish 
motive  for  this  great  duty.      **  That  we   may   lead    a 
tranquil  and  quiet  life  in  all  gcdhness  and  gravity,"  is 
the  object  and  consequence,  not  of  our  praying  for  kings 

*  Ad  Scaputam^  ii.  f  -^/'o/.,  xxxj. 


i.  I.]         ELEMENTS  OF  CHRISTIAN-  WORSHIP.  91 

and    rulers  in  particular,   but  of  our  offering  prayers 
and  thanksgivings  on  behalf  of  all  men. 

When  this  most  pressing  obligation  is  duly  dis- 
charged, then,  and  only  then,  can  we  hope  with  tran- 
quil consciences  to  be  able  to  live  Christian  lives  in 
retirement  from  the  rivalries  and  jealousies  and 
squabbles  of  the  world.  Only  in  the  attitude  of  mind 
which  makes  us  pray  and  give  thanks  for  our  fellow- 
men  is  the  tranquillity  of  a  godly  life  possible.  The 
enemies  of  Christian  peace  and  quietness  are  anxiety 
and  strife.  Are  we  anxious  about  the  well-being  of 
those  near  and  dear  to  us,  or  of  those  whose  interests 
are  bound  up  with  our  own  ?  Let  us  pray  for  them. 
Have  we  grave  misgivings  respecting  the  course  which 
events  are  taking  in  Church,  or  in  State,  or  in  any  of 
the  smaller  societies  to  which  we  belong  ?  Let  us  offer 
supplications  and  intercessions  on  behalf  of  all  con- 
cerned in  them.  Prayer  offered  in  faith  to  the  throne 
of  grace  will  calm  our  anxiety,  because  it  will  assure 
us  that  all  is  in  God's  hand,  and  that  in  His  own  good 
time  He  will  bring  good  out  of  the  evil.  Are  we  at 
strife  with  our  neighbours,  and  is  this  a  constant  source 
of  disturbance  ?  Let  us  pray  for  them.  Fervent  and 
frequent  prayers  for  those  who  are  hostile  to  us  will 
certainly  secure  this  much, — that  we  ourselves  become 
more  wary  about  giving  provocation ;  and  this  will 
go  a  long  way  towards  bringing  the  attainment  of  our 
desire  for  the  entire  cessation  of  the  strife.  Is  there 
any  one  to  whom  we  have  taken  a  strong  aversion, 
whose  very  presence  is  a  trial  to  us, whose  every  gesture 
and  every  tone  irritates  us,  and  the  sight  of  whose 
handwriting  makes  us  shiver,  because  of  its  disturbing 
associations  ?  Let  us  pray  for  him.  Sooner  or  later 
dislike  must  give  way  to  prayer.     It  is  impossible  to 


9^  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

go  on  taking  a  real  interest  in  the  welfare  of  another, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  go  on  detesting  him.  And  if 
our  prayers  for  his  welfare  are  genuine,  a  real  interest 
in  it  there  must  be.  Is  there  any  one  of  whom  we  are 
jealous  ?  Of  whose  popularity,  so  dangerous  to  our 
own,  we  are  envious  ?  Whose  success — quite  un- 
deserved success,  as  it  seems  to  us — disgusts  and 
frightens  us  ?  Whose  mishaps  and  failures,  nay  even 
whose  faults  and  misdeeds,  give  us  pleasure  and  satis- 
faction ?  Let  us  thank  God  for  the  favour  which  He 
bestows  upon  this  man.  Let  us  praise  our  heavenly 
Father  for  having  in  His  wisdom  and  His  justice  given 
to  another  of  His  children  what  He  denies  to  us ;  and 
let  us  pray  Him  to  keep  this  other  from  abusing  His 
gifts. 

Yes,  let  us  never  forget  that  not  only  prayers  but 
thanksgivings  are  to  be  offered  for  all  men.  He  who 
is  so  good  to  the  whole  Church,  of  which  we  are 
members,  and  to  the  great  human  family  to  which  we 
belong,  certainly  has  claim  upon  the  gratitude  of  every 
human  being,  and  especially  of  every  Christian.  His 
bounty  is  not  given  by  measure  or  by  merit.  He 
maketh  His  sun  to  shine  upon  the  evil  and  the  good, 
and  sendeth  His  rain  upon  the  just  and  the  unjust :  and 
shall  we  pick  and  choose  as  to  what  we  will  thank  Him 
for,  and  what  not  ?  The  sister  who  loves  her  erring 
or  her  half-witted  brother  is  grateful  to  her  father  for 
the  care  which  he  bestows  upon  his  graceless  and  his 
useless  son.  And  shall  we  not  give  thanks  to  our 
heavenly  Father  for  the  benefits  which  He  bestows  on 
the  countless  multitudes  whose  interests  are  so  closely 
interwoven  with  our  own  ?  Benefits  bestowed  upon 
any  human  being  are  an  answer  to  our  prayers,  and 
as  such  we  are  bound  to  give  thanks  for  them.     How 


[.]         ELEMENTS   OF  CHRISTIAN   WORSHIP.  93 


much  more  grateful  shall  we  be,  when  we  are  able  to 
look  on  them  as  benefits  bestowed  upon  those  whom 
we  love  ! 

This  is  the  cause  of  so  much  of  our  failure  in  prayer. 
We  do  not  couple  our  prayers  with  thanksgiving;  or 
at  any  rate  our  thanksgivings  are  far  less  hearty  than 
our  prayers.  We  give  thanks  for  benefits  received 
by  ourselves:  we  forget  to  give  thanks  '^for  all  men." 
Above  all,  we  forget  that  the  truest  gratitude  is  shown, 
not  in  words  or  feelings,  but  in  conduct.  We  should 
send  good  deeds  after  good  words  to  heaven.  Not  that 
our  ingratitude  provokes  God  to  withhold  His  gifts  ; 
but  that  it  does  render  us  less  capable  of  receiving 
them.  For  the  sake  of  others  no  less  than  for  our- 
selves let  us  remember  the  Apostle's  charge  that 
'*  thanksgivings  be  made  for  all  men."  We  cannot 
give  plenty  and  prosperity  to  the  nations  of  the  earth. 
We  cannot  bestow  on  them  peace  and  tranquillity. 
We  cannot  bring  them  out  of  darkness  to  God's 
glorious  light.  We  cannot  raise  them  from  impurity 
to  holiness.  We  can  only  do  a  little,  a  very  little, 
towards  these  great  ends.  But  one  thing  we  can  do. 
We  can  at  least  thank  Him  who,  has  already  bestowed 
some,  and  is  preparing  to  bestow  others,  of  these 
blessings.  We  can  praise  Him  for  the  end  towards 
which  He  will  have  all  things  work. — "  He  willeth  that 
all  men  should  be  saved  "  (ver.  4),  "  that  God  may  be 
all  in  all" 


CHAPTER    IX. 

BEHAVIOUR  IN  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP:  MENS  ATTI- 
TUDE OF  BODY  AND  MIND:  WOMEN'S  ATTIRE 
AND  ORNAMENT. 

"  I  desire,  therefore,  that  the  men  pray  in  every  place,  lifting  up 
holy  hands,  without  wrath  and  disputing.  In  like  manner,  that 
women  adorn  themselves  in  modest  apparel,  with  shamefacedness 
and  sobriety;  not  with  braided  hair,  and  gold  or  pearls  or  costly 
raiment ;  but  (which  becometh  women  professing  godliness)  through 
good  works.  Let  a  woman  learn  in  quietness  with  all  subjection. 
But  I  permit  not  a  woman  to  teach,  nor  to  have  dominion  over  a  man, 
but  to  be  in  quietness." — I  Tim.  ii.  8 — 12. 

IN  the  preceding  verses  of  this  chapter,  St.  Paul  has 
been  insisting  on  the  duty  of  unselfishness  in  our 
devotions.  Our  prayers  and  thanksgivings  are  not  to 
be  bounded  in  their  scope  by  our  own  personal  interests, 
but  are  to  include  the  whole  human  race ;  and  for  this 
obvious  and  sufficient  reason, — that  in  using  such 
devotions  we  know  that  our  desires  are  in  harmony 
with  the  mind  of  God,  ''who  willeth  that  ail  men 
should  be  saved,  and  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth."  Having  thus  laid  down  the  principles  which 
are  to  guide  Christian  congregations  in  the  subject- 
matter  of  their  prayers  and  thanksgivings,  he  passes  on 
now  to  give  some  directions  respecting  the  behaviour  of 
men  and  women,  when  they  meet  together  for  common 
worship  of  the  one  God  and  the  one  Mediator  between 
God  and  man,  Christ  Jesus. 


U.8-I2.]    BEHAVIOUR  IN  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP,  95 


There  is  no  reasonable  doubt  (although    the    point 
has  been  disputed)  that  St.  Paul  is  here  speaking  of 
public  worship  in  the  congregation  ;  the  whole  context 
implies  it.     Some  of  the  directions  would  be  scarcely 
intelligible,  if  we  were  to  suppose  that  the  Apostle  is 
thinking  of  private  devotions,  or  even  of  family  prayer 
in  Christian  households.     And  we  are  not  to  suppose 
that  he  is  indirectly  finding  fault  with  other  forms  of 
worship,   Jewish   or   heathen.       He  is    merely    laying 
down  certain  principles  which  are  to  guide  Christians, 
whether  at   Ephesus   or  elsewhere,  in  the  conduct  of 
public  service.     Thus  there  is  no  special  emphasis  on 
**in  every  place,"  as  if  the  meaning  were,  ^^  Our  ways 
are  not  like  those   of  the   Jews ;  for    they  were    not 
allowed   to  sacrifice    and    perform    their  services    any- 
where, but  assembling  from  all  parts  of  the  world  were 
bound  to  perform  all  their  worship  in  the  temple.     For 
as  Christ  commanded   us  to  pray  for  all  men,  because 
He  died  for  all  men,  so  it  is  good  to  pray  everywhere!^  * 
Such    an    antithesis    between    Jewish    and    Christian 
worship,  even  if  it  were  true,  would  not  be  in  place 
here.     Every  place  is  a  place  of  private  prayer  to  both 
Jew    and    Christian   alike :    but  not  every  place    is  a 
place  of  public  prayer  to  the  Christian  any  more  than 
to  the  Jew.f     Moreover,  the  Greek  shows  plainly  that 
the  emphasis  is  not  on  "  in  every  place,"  but  on  "  pray." 
Wherever  there  may  be  a  customary  "  house  of  prayer," 
whether   in    Ephesus    or   anywhere    else,  the   Apostle 
desires  that  prayers  should  be  offered  publicly  by  the 
men  in  the  congregation.     After  ^'pray,"  the  emphasis 
falls  on  ^*  the  men,"  public  prayer  is  to  be  made,  and  it 

*  So  Chrysostom  in  loco :  but  this  is  an  exaggeration  respecting 
Jewish  hmitations. 

"j"  See  Clement  of  Rome   Cor.  xli. 


96  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

is  to  be  conducted  by  the  men  and  not  by  the  women 
in  the  congregation. 

It  is  evident  from  this  passage,  as  from  I  Cor.  xiv., 
that  in  this  primitive  Christian  worship  great  freedom 
was  allowed.  There  is  no  Bishop,  President,  or  Elder, 
to  whom  the  right  of  leading  the  service  or  uttering  the 
prayers  and  thanksgivings  is  reserved.  This  duty  and 
privilege  is  shared  by  all  the  males  alike.  In  the 
recently  discovered  Doctrine  of  the  Twelve  Apostles 
nothing  is  said  as  to  who  is  to  offer  the  prayers,  of 
which  certain  forms  are  given.  It  is  merely  stated  that 
in  addition  to  these  forms  extempore  prayer  may  be 
offered  by  "the  prophets."  And  Justin  Martyr  men- 
tions that  a  similar  privilege  was  allowed  to  "  the 
president "  of  the  congregation  according  to  his  ability.* 
Thus  we  seem  to  trace  a  gradual  increase  of  strictness, 
a  development  of  ecclesiastical  order,  very  natural  under 
the  circumstances.  First,  all  the  men  in  the  congrega- 
tion are  allowed  to  conduct  public  worship,  as  here  and 
in  I  Corinthians.  Then,  the  right  of  adding  to  the 
prescribed  forms  is  restricted  to  the  prophets,  as  in  the 
Didache.  Next,  this  right  is  reserved  to  the  presiding 
minister,  as  in  Justin  Martyr.  And  lastl}^,  free  prayer 
is  abolished  altogether.  We  need  not  assume  that  pre- 
cisely this  development  took  place  in  all  the  Churches ; 
but  that  something  analogous  took  place  in  nearly  all. 
Nor  need  we  assume  that  the  development  was  simul- 
taneous :  while  one  Church  was  at  one  stage  of  the 
process,  another  was  more  advanced,  and  a  third  less 
so.  Again,  we  may  conjecture  that  forms  of  prayer 
gradually  increased  in  number,  and  in  extent,  and  in 

*  Didache,  x.  7;  Just.  Mart.,  Apol.,  I.  Ixvii.  Justin  probably 
uses  the  term  "president"  {oirpoeaTibs)  in  order  to  be  intelligible  to 
heathen  readers. 


ii.8.i2.]    BEHAVIOUR  IN  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP,  97 

Stringency.       But    in    the    directions    here    given    to 
Timothy  we  are  at  the  beginning  of  the  development. 

*'  Lifting  up  holy  hands."  Here  again  we  need  not 
suspect  any  polemical  purpose.  St.  Paul  is  not  in- 
sinuating that,  when  Gnostics  or  heathen  lift  up  their 
hands  in  prayer,  their  hands  are  not  holy.  Just  as 
every  Christian  is  ideally  a  saint,  so  every  hand  that  is 
lifted  up  in  prayer  is  holy.  In  thus  stating  the  ideal, 
the  Apostle  inculcates  the  realization  of  it.  There  is  a 
monstrous  incongruity  in  one  who  comes  red-handed 
from  the  commission  of  a  sin,  lifting  up  the  very 
members  which  witness  against  him,  in  order  to  im- 
plore a  blessing  from  the  God  whom  he  has  outraged. 
The  same  idea  is  expressed  in  more  general  terms 
by  St.  Peter:  ^'Like  as  He  which  called  you  is  holy, 
be  ye  yourselves  also  holy  in  all  m.anner  of  living  ; 
because  it  is  written,  ye  shall  be  holy;  for  I  am  holy" 
(i  Pet.  i.  15,  16).  In  a  passage  more  closely  parallel 
to  this,  Clement  of  Rome  says,  "  Let  us  therefore 
approach  Him  in  holiness  of  soul,  lifting  up  pure  and 
undefiled  hands  unto  Him,  with  love  towards  our  gentle 
and  compassionate  Father  who  made  us  an  elect  portion 
unto  Himself"  {Cor.  xxix).  And  TertulHan  urges  that 
"a  defiled  spirit  cannot  be  recognized  by  the  Holy 
Spirit"  {De  Orat.,  xiii).  Nowhere  else  in  the  New 
Testament  do  we  read  of  this  attitude  of  lifting  up  the 
hands  during  prayer.  But  to  this  day  it  is  common 
in  the  East.  Solomon  at  the  dedication  of  the  temple 
"stood  before  the  altar  of  the  Lord  in  the  presence  of 
all  the  congregation  of  Israel,  and  spread  forth  his  hands 
toward  heaven'^  (l  Kings  viii.  22);  and  the  Psalmist 
repeatedly  speaks  of  "  lifting  up  the  hands  "  in  worship 
(xxviii.  2;  Ixiii.  4;  cxxxiv.  2).  Clement  of  Alexandria 
seems  to  have  regarded  it  as  the  ideal  attitude  in  prayer, 

7 


98  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

as  symbolizing  the  desire  of  the  body  to  abstract  itself 
from  the  earth,  following  the  eagerness  of  the  spirit  in 
yearning  for  heavenly  things.*  Tertullian,  on  the 
other  hand,  suggests  that  the  arms  are  spread  out  in 
prayer  in  memory  of  the  crucifixion,  and  directs  that 
they  should  be  extended,  but  only  slightly  raised,  an 
attitude  which  is  more  in  harmony  with  a  humble 
spirit  :  and  in  another  place  he  says  that  the  Christian 
by  his  very  posture  in  prayer  is  ready  for  every  inflic- 
tion. He  asserts  that  the  Jews  in  his  day  did  not  raise 
the  hands  in  prayer,  and  characteristically  gives  as  a 
reason  that  they  were  stained  with  the  blood  of  the 
Prophets  and  of  Christ.  With  evident  reference  to  this 
passage,  he  says  that  Christian  hands  must  be  lifted  up 
pure  from  falsehood,  murder,  and  all  other  sins  of 
which  the  hands  can  be  the  instruments.!  Ancient 
Christian  monuments  of  the  earliest  age  frequently 
represent  the  faithful  as  standing  with  raised  hands  to 
pray.  Eusebius  tells  us  that  Constantine  had  himself 
represented  in  this  attitude  on  his  coins,  ^'  looking 
upwards,  stretching  up  toward  God,  like  one  praying."  J 
Of  course  this  does  not  mean  that  kneeling  was  unusual 
or  irregular  ;  there  is  plenty  of  evidence  to  the  contrary. 
But  the  attitude  here  commended  by  St.  Paul  was  very 
ancient  when  he  wrote,  and  has  continued  in  some 
parts  of  the  world  ever  since.  Like  so  many  other 
things  in  natural  religion  and  in  Judaism,  it  received 
a  new  and  intensified  meaning  when  it  was  adopted 
among  the  usages  of  the  Christian  Church. 

"  Without  wrath    and  disputing : "    that   is,    in    the 
spirit  of  Christian  peace  and  trust.     Ill-will  and  mis- 

*  Strom.,  VII.  vii. 

f  De  Omt.,  xiii.,  xiv.,  xvii.  :  Apol.  xxx. ;  Comp.  Adv,Jud.,  x. 

X  Vii.  Const.,  IV.  xv.  i. 


ii.8-i2.]    BEHAVIOUR  IN  CHRISTIAN  WORSHIP,  99 


giving  respecting  one  another  are  incompatible  with 
united  prayer  to  our  common  Father.  The  atmosphere 
of  controversy  is  not  congenial  to  devotion.  Christ 
Himself  has  told  us  to  be  reconciled  to  our  brother 
before  presuming  to  offer  our  gift  on  the  altar.  In  a 
similar  spirit  St.  Paul  directs  that  those  who  are  to 
conduct  public  service  in  the  sanctuary  must  do  so 
without  angry  feelings  or  mutual  distrust.  In  the 
Pastoral  Epistles  warnings  against  quarrelsome  conduct 
are  frequent ;  and  the  experience  of  every  one  of  us  tells 
us  how  necessary  they  are.  The  bishop  is  charged  to 
be  "  no  brawler,  no  striker  ;  but  gentle,  not  contentious." 
The  deacons  must  not  be  "  double-tongued."  Women 
must  not  be  "  slanderers."  Young  widows  have  to  be 
on  their  guard  against  being  *'  tattlers  and  busybodies." 
Timothy  is  charged  to  ''  follow  after  .  .  .  love,  patience, 
meekness/'  and  is  reminded  that  "  the  Lord's  servant 
must  not  strive,  but  be  gentle  towards  all,  apt  to  teacb, 
forbearing,  in  meekness  correcting  them  that  oppose 
themselves."  Titus  again  is  told  that  a  bishop  must 
be  '*  not  self-willed,  not  soon  angry,"  ''  no  brawler,  no 
striker,"  that  the  aged  women  must  not  be  "  slanderers," 
that  all  men  are  to  be  put  in  mind  '^  to  speak  evil  of  no 
man,  not  to  be  contentious,  to  be  gentle,  showing  all 
meekness  toward  all  men."*  There  is  no  need  to 
assume  that  that  age,  cr  that  those  Churches,  had  any 
special  need  of  warnings  of  this  kind.  All  ages  and  all 
Churches  need  them.  To  keep  one's  tongue  and  one's 
temper  in  due  order  is  to  all  of  us  one  of  the  most 
constant  and  necessar}^  duties  of  the  Christian  life ; 
and  the  neglect  cannot  fail  to  be  disastrous  to  the 
reality  and  efficacy  of  our  devotions.     Those  who  have 

*  I  Tim.  hi.  3,  8,  n  ;  v.  13;  vi.  ii ;  2  Tim.  ii.  24;  Tit.  i.  7;  ii.  3; 
iii.  2. 


loo  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

ill-will  and  strife  in  their  hearts  cannot  unite  to  much 
purpose  in  common  thanksgiving  and  prayer. 

And  just  as  the  men  have  to  take  care  that  their 
attitude  of  body  and  mind  is  such  as  befits  the  dignity 
of  public  vi^orship,  in  like  manner  the  women  also  have 
to  take  care  that  their  presence  in  the  congregation  does 
not  appear  incongruous.  They  must  come  in  seemly 
attire  and  with  seemly  behaviour.  Everything  which 
might  divert  attention  from  the  service  to  themselves 
must  be  avoided.  Modesty  and  simplicity  must  at  all 
times  be  the  characteristics  of  a  Christian  woman's  dress 
and  bearing ;  but  at  no  time  is  this  more  necessary 
than  in  the  public  services  of  the  Church.  Excessive 
adornment,  out  of  place  at  all  times,  is  grievously 
offensive  there.  It  gives  a  flat  contradiction  to  the 
profession  of  humility  which  is  involved  in  taking  part 
in  common  worship,  and  to  that  natural  sobriety  which 
is  a  woman's  fairest  ornament  and  best  protection. 
Both  reverence  and  self-rtverence  are  injured  by  it. 
Moreover,  it  m.ay  easily  be  a  cause  of  offence  to  others, 
by  provoking  jealousy  or  admiration  of  the  creature, 
where  all  ought  to  be  absorbed  in  the  worship  of  the 
Creator. 

Here  again  St.  Paul  is  putting  his  finger  upon 
dangers  and  evils  which  are  not  peculiar  to  any  age 
or  any  Church.  He  had  spoken  of  the  same  thing 
years  before,  to  the  women  of  Corinth,  and  St.  Peter 
utters  similar  v.  arnings  to  Christian  women  throughout 
all  time.*  Clement  of  Alexandria  abounds  in  protests 
against  the  extravagance  in  dress  so  common  in  his 
own  day.  In  one  place  he  says;  "Apelles  the  painter 
seeing  one  of  his  pupils  pamting  a  figure  thickly  with 

*   I  Ccr.  xi.  2-16;  I  Pet.  iii.  3,  4. 


ii.8-i2.]    BEHAVIOUR  IN  CHRISTIAN   WORSHIP.  lot 

gold  colour  to  represent  Helen,  said  to  him  ;  *  My  lad, 
you  were  unable  to  paint  her  beautiful,  and  so  you 
have  made  her  rich.'  Such  Helens  are  the  ladies  of  the 
present  day ;  not  really  beautiful,  but  richly  got  up.  To 
these  the  Spirit  prophesies  by  Zephaniah :  And  their 
gold  shall  not  be  able  to  deliver  them  in  the  day  of 
the  Lord's  anger."*  Tertullian  is  not  less  emphatic. 
He  says  that  most  Christian  women  dress  like  heathen, 
as  if  modesty  required  nothing  more  than  stopping  short 
of  actual  impurity.  *'  What  is  the  use,"  he  asks,  "  of 
showing  a  decent  and  Christian  simplicity  in  your  face, 
while  you  load  the  rest  of  your  body  with  the  dangling 
absurdities  of  pomps  and  vanities?"!  Chrysostom 
also,  in  commenting  on  this  very  passage,  asks  the 
congregation  at  Antioch ;  "And  what  then  is  modest 
apparel?  Such  as  covers  them  completely  and  decently, 
and  not  with  superfluous  ornaments ;  for  the  one  is 
decent  and  the  other  is  not.  What  ?  Do  you  approach 
God  to  pray  with  broidered  hair  and  ornaments  of 
gold  ?  Are  you  come  to  a  ball  ?  to  a  marriage-feast  ? 
to  a  carnival?  There  such  costly  things  might  have 
been  seasonable  :  here  not  one  of  them  is  wanted. 
You  are  come  to  pray,  to  ask  pardon  for  your  sins,  to 
plead  for  your  offences,  beseeching  the  Lord,  and 
hoping  to  render  Him  propitious  to  you.  Away  with 
such  hypocrisy !  God  is  not  mocked.  This  is  the 
attire  of  actors  and  dancers,  who  live  upon  the  stage. 
Nothing  of  this  kind  becomes  a  modest  woman,  who 
should  be  adorned  with  shamefastness  and  sobriety. 
.  .  .  And  if  St.  Paul  "  (he  continues)  ''  would  remove 
those  things  which  are  merely  the  marks  of  wealth,  as 
gold,  pearls,  and  costly  array  ;  how  much  more  those 


*  Peed.,  II.  xiii.  f  De  Cult  Fern.,  II.  i.  ix. 


102  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

things  which  imply  studied  adornment,  as  painting, 
colouring  the  e3^es,  a  mincing  walk,  an  aflfected  voice, 
a  languishing  look  ?  For  he  glances  at  all  these  things 
in  speaking  of  modest  apparel  and  shamefastness." 

But  there  is  no  need  to  go  to  Corinth  in  the  first 
century,  or  Alexandria  and  Carthage  in  the  second  and 
third,  or  Antioch  in  the  fourth,  in  order  to  show  that 
the  Apostle  was  giving  no  unnecessary  warning  in 
admonishing  Timothy  respecting  the  dress  and  be- 
haviour of  Christian  women,  especially  in  the  public 
services  of  the  congregation.  In  our  own  age  and  our 
own  Church  we  can  find  abundant  illustration.  Might 
not  any  preacher  in  any  fashionable  congregation  echo 
with  a  good  deal  of  point  the  questions  of  Chr3'sostom  ? 
**  Have  you  come  to  dance  or  a  levee  ?  Have  you 
mistaken  this  building  for  a  theatre  ? "  And  what 
would  be  the  language  of  a  Chrysostom  or  a  Paul  if 
he  were  to  enter  a  theatre  nowadays  and  see  the 
attire,  I  will  not  say  of  the  actresses,  but  of  the 
audience?  There  are  some  rough  epithets,  not  often 
heard  in  polite  society,  which  express  in  plain  language 
the  condition  of  those  women  who  by  their  manner  ot 
life  and  conversation  have  forfeited  their  characters. 
Preachers  in  earlier  ages  were  accustomed  to  speak  very 
plainly  about  such  things  :  and  what  the  Apostle  and 
Chrysostom  have  written  in  their  epistles  and  homilies 
does  not  leave  us  in  much  doubt  as  to  what  would 
have  been  their  manner  of  speaking  of  them. 

But  what  is  urged  here  is  sufficient.  "  You  are 
Christian  women,"  says  St.  Paul,  *'  and  the  profession 
which  you  have  adopted  is  reverence  towards  God 
{deoaePeiav).  This  profession  you  have  made  known 
to  the  world.  It  is  necessary,  therefore,  that  those 
externals  of  which  the  world  takes  cognisance  should 


ii.8-i2.]    BEHAVIOUR  IN  CHRISTIAN   WORSHIP.  103 

not  give  the  lie  to  your  profession.  And  how  is 
unseemly  attire,  paraded  at  the  very  time  of  public 
worship,  compatible  with  the  reverence  which  you  have 
professed  ?  Reverence  God  by  reverencing  yourselves ; 
by  guarding  with  jealous  care  the  dignity  of  those 
bodies  with  which  He  has  endowed  you.  Reverence 
God  by  coming  before  Him  clothed  both  in  body  and 
soul  in  fitting  attire.  Let  your  bodies  be  freed  from 
meretricious  decoration.  Let  your  souls  be  adorned 
with  abundance  of  good  works." 


CHAPTER  X. 

ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY ;  VARIOUS  CER- 
TAINTIES AND  PROBABILITIES  DISTINGUISHED. 

"  If  a  man  seeketh  the  office  of  a  bishop,  he  desireth  a  good  work. 
The  bishop  therefore  must  be  without  reproach,  the  husband  of 
one  wife,  temperate,  sober-minded,  orderly,  given  to  hospitality,  apt 
to  teach;  no  brawler,  no  striker;  but  gentle,  not  contentious,  no 
lover  of  money;  one  that  ruleth  well  his  own  house,  having  his 
children  in  subjection  with  all  gravity ;  (but  if  a  man  knoweth  not 
how  to  rule  his  own  house,  how  shall  he  take  care  of  the  house  of 
God  ?)  not  a  novice,  lest  being  puffed  up  he  fall  into  the  condemnation 
of  the  devil.  Moreover  he  must  have  good  testimony  from  them  that 
are  without ;  lest  he  fall  into  reproach  and  the  snare  of  the  devil. 
Deacons  in  like  manner  must  be  grave,  not  double-tongued,  not  given 
to  much  wine,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre ;  holding  the  mystery  of  the 
faith  in  a  pu)  e  conscience.  And  let  these  also  first  be  proved ;  then 
let  them  serve  as  deacons,  if  they  be  blameless." — i  Tim.  iii.  I — lo. 

THIS  passage  is  one  of  the  most  important  in  the 
New  Testament  respecting  the  Christian  ministry ; 
and  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles  it  does  not  stand  alone.  Of 
the  two  classes  of  ministers  mentioned  here,  one  is  again 
touched  upon  in  the  Epistle  to  Titus  (i.  5 — 9),  and  the 
qualifications  for  this  office,  which  is  evidently  the 
superior  of  the  two,  are  stated  in  terms  not  very 
different  from  those  which  are  used  in  the  passage 
before  us.  Therefore  a  series  of  expositions  upon  the 
Pastoral  Epistles  would  be  culpably  incomplete  which 
did  not  attempt  to  arrive  at  some  conclusions  respecting 
the   question   of  the   primitive   Christian   ministry ;  a 


iii.  i-io.]    ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.         105 

question  which  at  the  present  time  is  being  investigated 
with  immense  industry  and  interest,  and  with  some 
clear  and  substantial  results.  The  time  is  probably 
far  distant  when  the  last  word  will  have  been  said 
upon  the  subject ;  for  it  is  one  on  which  considerable 
difference  of  opinion  is  not  only  possible  but  reason- 
able :  and  those  persons  would  seem  to  be  least  worthy 
of  consideration,  who  are  most  confident  that  they  are 
in  possession  of  the  whole  truth  on  the  subject.  One 
of  the  first  requisites  in  the  examination  of  questions 
of  fact  is  a  power  of  accurately  distinguishing  what  is 
certain  from  what  is  not  certain  :  and  the  person  who 
is  confident  that  he  has  attained  to  certainty,  when  the 
evidence  in  his  possession  does  not  at  all  warrant 
certainty,  is  not  a  trustworthy  guide. 

It  would  be  impossible  in  a  discussion  of  moderate 
length  to  touch  upon  all  the  points  which  have  been 
raised  in  connexion  with  this  problem  ;  but  some  service 
will  have  been  rendered  if  a  few  of  the  more  important 
features  of  the  question  are  pointed  out  and  classified 
under  the  two  heads  just  indicated,  as  certain  or  not 
certain.  In  any  scientific  enquiry,  whether  historical 
or  experimental,  this  classification  is  a  useful  one,  and 
very  often  leads  to  the  enlargement  of  the  class  of 
certainties.  When  the  group  of  certainties  has  been 
properly  investigated,  and  when  the  various  items  have 
been  placed  in  their  proper  relations  to  one  another 
and  to  the  whole  of  which  they  are  only  constituent 
parts,  the  result  is  Hkely  to  be  a  transfer  of  other  items 
irom  the  domain  of  what  is  only  probable  or  possible 
to  the  domain  of  what  is  certain. 

At  the  outset  it  is  necessary  to  place  a  word  of 
caution  as  to  what  is  meant,  in  a  question  of  this  kind, 
by  certainty.     There  are  no  limits  to  scepticism,  as  the 


lo6  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 

history  of  speculative  philosophy  has  abundantly  shown. 
It  is  possible  to  question  one's  own  existence,  and  still 
more  possible  to  question  the  irresistible  evidence  of 
one's  senses  or  the  irresistible  conclusions  of  one's 
reason.  A  Jortiori  it  is  possible  to  throw  doubt  upon 
any  historical  fact.  We  can,  if  we  like,  classify  the 
assassinations  of  Julius  Caesar  and  of  Cicero,  and  the 
genuineness  of  the  iEneid  and  of  the  Epistles  to  the 
Corinthians,  among  things  that  are  not  certain.  They 
cannot  be  demonstrated  like  a  proposition  in  Euclid  or 
an  experiment  in  chemistry  or  physics.  But  a  sceptical 
criticism  of  this  kind  makes  history  impossible ;  for  it 
demands  as  a  condition  of  certainty  a  kind  of  evidence, 
and  an  amount  of  evidence,  which  from  the  nature  of 
the  case  is  unattainable.  Juries  are  directed  by  the 
courts  to  treat  evidence  as  adequate,  which  they  would 
be  willing  to  recognize  as  such  in  matters  of  very 
serious  moment  to  themselves.  There  is  a  certain 
amount  of  evidence  which  to  a  person  of  trained  and 
well-balanced  mind  makes  a  thing  "  practically  certain  : " 
i.e.y  with  this  amount  of  evidence  before  him  he  would 
confidently  act  on  the  assumption  that  the  thing  was 
true. 

In  the  question  before  us  there  are  four  or  five  things 
which  may  with  great  reason  be  treated  as  practically 
certain. 

I.  The  solution  of  the  question  as  to  the  origin  of 
the  Christian  ministry,  has  no  practical  hearing  upon  the 
lives  of  Christians,  For  us  the  problem  is  one  of  his- 
torical interest  without  moral  import.  As  students  of 
Church  History  we  are  bound  to  investigate  the  origines 
of  the  ministry  which  has  been  one  of  the  chief  factors 
in  that  history  :  but  our  loyalty  as  members  of  the 
Church  will  not  be  affected  by  the  result  of  our  investi- 


iii.l-io.]     ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MimSTRV.         107 

gations.  Our  duty  towards  the  constitution  consisting 
of  bishops,  priests,  and  deacons,  which  existed  un- 
challenged from  the  close  of  the  second  century  to  the 
close  of  the  Middle  Ages,  and  which  has  existed  down 
to  the  present  day  in  all  the  three  great  branches  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  Roman,  Oriental,  and  Anglican,  is 
no  way  affected  by  the  question  whether  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  Church  during  the  century  which  separates 
the  writings  of  St  John  from  the  writings  of  his 
disciple's  disciple,  Irenseus,  was  as  a  rule  episcopal, 
collegiate,  or  presbyterian.  For  a  churchman  who 
accepts  the  episcopal  form  of  government  as  essential  to 
the  well-being  of  a  Church,  the  enormous  prescription 
which  that  form  has  acquired  during  at  least  seventeen 
centuries,  is  such  ample  justification,  that  he  can  afford 
to  be  serene  as  to  the  outcome  of  enquiries  respecting 
the  constitution  of  the  various  infant  Churches  from 
A.D.  85  to  A.D.  185.  It  makes  no  practical  difference 
either  to  add,  or  not  to  add,  to  an  authority  which  is 
already  ample.  To  prove  that  the  episcopal  form  of 
government  was  founded  by  the  Apostles  may  have  been 
a  matter  of  great  practical  importance  in  the  middle  of 
the  second  century.  But,  before  that  century  had 
closed,  the  practical  question,  if  there  ever  was  oney  had 
settled  itself.  God's  providence  ordained  that  the 
universal  form  of  Church  government  should  be  the 
episcopal  form  and  should  continue  to  be  such;  and 
for  us  it  adds  little  to  its  authority  to  know  that  the 
way  in  which  it  became  universal  was  through  the 
instrumentality  and  influence  of  Apostles.  On  the 
other  hand,  to  prove  that  episcopacy  was  established 
independently  of  Apostolic  influence  would  detract 
very  little  from  its  accumulated  authority. 

2,  A  second  point,  which  may  be  regarded  as  certain 


to3  "THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHV. 

with  regard  to  this  question,  is,  i\\2Lt  for  the  period  which 
joins  the  age  oj  Irenceus  to  the  age  of  St.  John,  we  have 
not  sufficient  evidence  to  arrive  at  anything  like  proof. 
The  evidence  has  received  important  additions  during 
the  present  century,  and  still  more  important  additions 
are  by  no  means  impossible ;  but  at  present  our 
materials  are  still  inadequate.  And  the  evidence  is 
insufficient  in  two  ways  First,  although  surprisingly 
large  as  compared  with  what  might  have  been  reason- 
ably expected,  yet  in  itself,  the.  literature  of  this  period 
is  fragmentary  and  scanty.  Secondly,  the  dates  of 
some  of  the  most  important  witnesses  cannot  as  yet 
be  accurately  determined.  In  many  cases  to  be  able 
to  fix  the  date  of  a  document  within  twenty  or  thirty 
years  is  quite  sufficient  :  but  this  is  a  case  in  which 
the  difference  of  twenty  years  is  a  really  serious 
difference ;  and  there  is  fully  that  amount  of  uncertainty 
as  to  the  date  of  some  of  the  writings  which  are  our 
principal  sources  of  information  ;  e.g.,  ih^  Doctrine  of  the 
Twelve  Apostles,  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius,  the  Shepherd 
of  Herniary  and  the  Clementines.  Here  also  our  posi- 
tion may  improve.  Further  research  may  enable  us 
to  date  some  of  these  documents  accurately.  But,  for 
the  present,  uncertainty  about  precise  dates  and  general 
scantiness  of  evidence  compel  us  to  admit  that  with 
regard  to  many  of  the  points  connected  with  this 
question  nothing  that  can  fairly  be  called  proof  is 
possible  respecting  the  interval  which  separates  the 
last  quarter  of  the  first  century  from  the  last  quarter 
of  the  second. 

This  feature  of  the  problem  is  sometimes  represented 
by  the  useful  metaphor  that  the  history  of  the  Church 
just  at  this  period  ''  passes  through  a  tunnel "  or  **  runs 
underground."      We   are  in  the    light  of  day  during 


ill.  l-io.]    ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.         lo^ 


most  of  the  time  covered  by  the  New  Testament ;  and 
we  are  again  in  the  light  of  day  directly  we  reach  the 
time  covered  by  the  abundant  writings  of  Irenaeus, 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  Tertullian,  and  others.  But 
during  the  intervening  period  we  are,  not  indeed  in 
total  darkness,  but  in  a  passage  the  obscurity  of  which 
is  only  slightly  relieved  by  an  occasional  lamp  or  light- 
hole.  Leaving  this  tantalizing  interval,  about  which 
the  one  thing  that  is  certain  is  that  many  certainties 
are  not  likely  to  be  found  in  it,  we  pass  on  to  look  for 
our  two  next  certainties  in  the  periods  which  precede 
and  follow  it. 

3.  In  the  period  covered  by  the  New  Testament  it 
is  certain  that  the  Church  had  officers  who  discharged 
spiritual  functions  which  were  not  discharged  by 
ordinary  Christians;  in  other  words  a  distinction  was 
made  from  the  first  between  clergv  and  laity.  Of  this 
fact. the  Pastoral  Epistles  contain  abundant  evidence; 
and  further  evidence  is  scattered  up  and  down  the 
New  Testament,  from  the  earliest  document  in  the 
volume  to  the  last.  In  the  First  Epistle  to  the  Thes- 
salonians,  which  is  certainly  the  earliest  Christian 
writing  that  has  come  down  to  us,  we  find  St.  Paul 
beseeching  the  Church  of  the  Thessalonians  "  to  know 
them  that  labour  among  you,  and  are  over  you  in  the 
Lordy  and  admonish  you;  and  to  esteem  them  exceed- 
ing highly  in  love  for  their  work's  sake"  (v.  12,  13). 
The  three  functions  here  enumerated  are  evidently 
functions  to  be  exercised  by  a  few  with  regard  to  the 
many  :  they  are  not  duties  which  every  one  is  to  dis- 
charge towards  every  one.  In  the  Third  Epistle  of 
St.  John,  which  is  certainly  one  of  the  latest,  and 
perhaps  the  very  latest,  of  the  writings  contained  in 
the   New   Testament,   the   incident   about    Diotrephes 


110  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 

seems  to  show  that  not  only  ecclesiastical  government, 
but  ecclesiastical  government  by  a  single  official,  was 
already  in  existence  in  the  Church  in  which  Diotrephes 
"loved  to  have  the  pre-eminence"  (9,  10).  In  between 
these  two  we  have  the  exhortation  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews  :  ''  Obey  them  that  have  the  rule  over  you  and 
submit  to  them  :  for  they  watch  in  behalf  of  your 
souls y  as  they  that  shall  give  account"  (xiii.  17).  And 
directly  we  go  outside  the  New  Testament  and  look 
at  the  Epistle  of  the  Church  of  Rome  to  the  Church  of 
Corinth,  commonly  called  the  First  Epistle  of  Clement, 
we  find  the  same  distinction  between  clergy  and  laity 
observed.  In  this  letter,  which  almost  certainly  was 
written  during  the  lifetime  of  St.  John,  we  read  that 
the  Apostles,  *^  preaching  everywhere  in  country  and 
town,  appointed  their  firstfruits,  when  they  had  proved 
them  by  the  Spirit,  to  be  bishops  and  deacons  unto 
them  that  should  believe.  And  this  they  did  in  no 
new  fashion ;  for  indeed  it  had  been  written  concerning 
bishops  and  deacons  from  very  ancient  times  ;  for  thus 
saith  the  scripture  in  a  certain  place,  I  will  appoint 
their  bishops  in  righteousness,  and  their  deacons  in 
faith" — the  last  words  being  an  inaccurate  quotation 
of  the  LXX.  of  Isa.  Ix.  17.  And  a  little  further  on 
Clement  writes :  "  Our  Apostles  knew  through  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  that  there  would  be  strife  over  the 
name  of  the  bishop's  office.  For  this  cause,  therefore, 
having  received  complete  fore-knowledge,  they  appointed 
the  aforesaid  persons,  and  afterwards  they  provided 
a  continuance,  that  if  these  should  fall  asleep,  other 
approved  men  should  succeed  to  their  ministration. 
Those  therefore  who  were  appointed  by  them,  or  after- 
ward by  other  men  of  repute  with  the  consent  of  the 
whole   Church,   and    have   ministered   unblamably   to 


iii.  i-io.]    ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.         11 1 

the  flock  of  Christ  in  lowliness  of  mind,  peacefully  and 
with  all  modesty,  and  for  long  time  have  borne  a  good 
report  with  all — these  men  we  consider  to  be  unjustly 
thrust  out  from  their  ministration.  For  it  will  be  no 
light  sin  for  us,  if  we  thrust  out  those  who  have  offered 
the  gifts  of  the  bishop's  office  unblamably  and  holily. 
Blessed  are  those  presbyters  who  have  gone  before, 
seeing  that  their  departure  was  fruitful  and  ripe,  for 
they  have  no  fear  lest  any  one  should  remove  them 
from  their  appointed  place.  For  we  see  that  ye  have 
displaced  certain  persons,  though  they  were  living 
honourably,  from  the  ministration  which  they  had  kept 
blamelessly  "  (xlii.,  xliv.). 

Three  things  come  out  very  clearly  from  this  passage, 
confirming  what  has  been  found  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment, (i)  There  is  a  clear  distinction  made  between 
clergy  and  laity.  (2)  This  distinction  is  not  a  temporary 
arrangement,  but  is  the  basis  of  a  permanent  organiza- 
tion. (3)  A  person  who  has  been  duly  promoted  to 
the  ranks  of  the  clergy  as  a  presbyter  or  bishop  (the 
two  titles  being  here  synonymous,  as  in  the  Epistle  to 
Titus)  holds  that  position  for  life.  Unless  he  is  guilty 
of  some  serious  offence,  to  depose  him  is  no  light 
sin. 

None  of  these  passages,  either  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment or  in  Clement,  tell  us  very  clearly  the  precise 
nature  of  the  functions  which  the  clergy,  as  distinct 
from  the  laity,  were  to  discharge ;  yet  they  indicate 
that  these  functions  were  of  a  spiritual  rather  than  of  a 
secular  character,  that  they  concerned  men's  souls  rather 
than  their  bodies,  and  that  they  were  connected  with 
religious  service  (Xeijovp^ia).  But  the  one  thing  which 
is  quite  clear  is  this, — that  the  Church  had,  and  was 
always  intended  to   have,  a  body  of  officers   distinct 


iii  THk  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

from  the  congregations  to  which  they  ministered  and 
over  which  they  ruled. 

4.  For  our  fourth  certainty  we   resort   to  the    time 
when  the  history  of  the  Church  returns  once  more  to 
the  full  light  of  day,  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  second 
century.     Then  we  find  two  things  quite  clearly  esta- 
blished, which  have  continued  in  Christendom  from  that 
day  to  this.     We  find  a  regularly  organized  clergy^  not 
only  distinctly  marked  off  from  the  laity,  but  distinctly 
marked  off  among  themselves  by  well  defined  gradations 
of  rank.     And,  secondly,  we  find  that  each  local  Church 
is  constitutionally  governed  by  one  chief  officer,  whose 
powers  are  large  and  seldom  resisted,  and  who  univer- 
sally receives  the  title  of  bishop.     To  these  two  points 
we  may  add  a  third.     There  is  no  trace  of  any  belief, 
or  even  suspicion,  that  the  constitution  of  these  local 
Churches  had  ever  been  anything  else.     On  the  con- 
trary, the  evidence  (and  it  is  considerable)  points  to 
the  conclusion  that   Christians   in    the   latter   part    of 
the  second  century — say  a.d.   180  to  200 — were  fully 
persuaded  that  the  episcopal  form  of  government  had 
prevailed  in  the  different  Churches  from  the  Apostles' 
time  to  their  own.     Just  as  in  the  case  of  the  Gospels, 
Irenaeus  and  his  contemporaries  not  only  do  not  know 
of  either  more  or  less  than  the  four  which  have  come 
down  to  us,  but  cannot  conceive  of  there  ever  being 
either  more  or  less  than  these  four  :  so  in  the  case  of 
Church  Government,  they  not  only  represent  episcopacy 
as  everywhere  prevalent  in  their  time,  but  they  have 
no  idea  that  at  any  previous  time  any  other  form   of 
government   prevailed.      And    although    Irenaeus,    like 
St.  Paul  and  Clement  of  Rome,  sometimes  speaks  of 
bishops  under  the  title   of  presbyter,  yet   it  is   quite 
clear  that  there  were  at  that  time  presbyters  who  were 


111.  i-io.]    ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.         li^ 

not  bishops  and  who  did  not  possess  episcopal  authority. 
Irenaeus  himself  was  such  a  presbyter,  until  the  martyr- 
dom of  Pothinus  in  the  persecution  of  a.d.  177  created 
a  vacancy  in  the  see  of  Lyons,  which  Irenaeus  was 
then  called  upon  to  fill ;  and  he  held  the  see  for  up- 
wards of  twenty  years,  from  about  a.d.  180  to  202. 
From  Irenaeus  and  from  his  contemporary  Dionysius, 
Bishop  of  Corinth,  we  learn  not  only  the  fact  that 
episcopacy  prevailed  everywhere,  but,  in  not  a  few 
cases,  the  name  of  the  existing  bishop ;  and  in  some 
cases  the  names  of  their  predecessors  are  given  up  to 
the  times  of  the  Apostles.  Thus,  in  the  case  of  the 
Church  of  Rome,  Linus  the  first  bishop  is  connected 
with  "  the  two  most  glorious  Apostles  Peter  and  Paul "  : 
and,  in  the  case  of  Athens,  Dionysius  the  Areopagite 
is  said  to  have  been  appointed  first  bishop  of  that 
Church  by  the  Apostle  Paul.  This  may  or  may  not 
be  correct :  but  at  least  it  shows  that  in  the  time  ol 
Irenaeus  and  Dionysius  of  Corinth  episcopacy  was 
not  only  recognized  as  the  universal  form  of  Church 
government,  but  was  also  believed  to  have  prevailed 
in  the  principal  Churches  from  the  very  earliest  times.  * 
5.  If  we  narrow  our  field  and  look,  not  at  the  whole 
Church,  but  at  the  Churches  of  Asia  Minor  and  Syria, 
we  may  obtain  yet  another  certainty  from  the  obscure 
period  which  lies  between  the  age  of  the  Apostles  and 
that  of  Dionysius  and  Irenaeus.  The  investigations  of 
L'ightfoot,  Zahn,  and  Harnack  have  placed  the  genuine- 
ness of  the  short  Greek  form  of  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius 
beyond  reasonable  dispute.     Their  exact  date  cannot 


*  See  an  admirable  article  on  the  Christian  ministry  by  Dr.  Salmon 
in  the  Expositor  for  July,  1887  ;  also  the  present  writer's  Church  of 
the  Early  Fathers,  pp.  58  ff.;  92  fif. ;  2nd  ed.  Longmans,  1887. 

8 


114  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

as  yet  be  determined.  The  evidence  is  strong  that 
Ignatius  was  martyred  in  the  reign  of  Trajan  :  and, 
if  that  is  accepted,  the  letters  cannot  be  later  than 
A.D.  117.  But  even  if  this  evidence  be  rejected  as  not 
conclusive,  and  the  letters  be  dated  ten  or  twelve  years 
later,  their  testimony  will  still  be  of  the  utmost  import- 
ance. They  prove  that  long  before  a. d.  150  episcopacy 
was  the  recognized  form  of  government  throughout  the 
Churches  of  Asia  Minor  and  Syria ;  and,  as  Ignatius 
speaks  of  "  the  bishops  that  are  settled  in  the  farthest 
parts  of  the  earth  {icaTa  tcl  irepara  opiorOevTe^) "  they 
prove  that,  according  to  his  belief,  episcopacy  was  the 
recognized  form  everywhere  (Ephes.  iii.).  This  evidence 
is  not  a  little  strengthened  by  the  fact  that,  as  all  sound 
critics  on  both  sides  are  now  agreed,  the  Epistles  of 
Ignatius  were  evidently  not  written  in  order  to  magnify 
the  episcopal  office,  or  to  preach  up  the  episcopal 
system.  The  writer's  main  object  is  to  deprecate  schism 
and  all  that  might  tend  to  schism.  And  in  his  opinion 
the  best  way  to  avoid  schism  is  to  keep  closely  united 
to  the  bishop.  Thus,  the  magnifying  of  the  episcopal 
office  comes  about  incidentally  ;  because  Ignatius  takes 
for  granted  that  everywhere  there  is  a  bishop  in  each 
Church,  who  is  the  duly  appointed  ruler  of  it,  loyalty 
to  whom  will  be  a  security  against  all  schismatical 
tendencies. 

These  four  or  five  points  being  regarded  as  esta- 
blished to  an  extent  which  may  reasonably  be  called 
certainty,  there  remain  certain  other  points  about  which 
certainty  is  not  yet  possible,  some  of  which  admit  of 
a  probable  solution,  while  for  others  there  is  so  little 
evidence  that  we  have  to  fall  back  upon  mere  conjecture. 
Among  these  would  be  the  distinctions  of  office,  or 
gradations  of  rank,  among  the  clergy  in  the  first  century 


iii.i-io.]    ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY,         115 

or  century  and  a  half  after  the  Ascension,  the  precise 
functions  assigned  to  each  office,  and  the  manner  of 
appointment.  With  regard  to  these  questions  three 
positions  may  be  assumed  with  a  considerable  amount 
of  probability. 

1.  There  was  a  distinction  made  between  itinerant 
or  missionary  clergy  and  stationary  or  localized  clergy. 
Among  the  former  we  find  apostles  (who  are  a  much 
larger  body  than  the  Twelve),  prophets,  and  evangelists. 
Among  the  latter  we  have  two  orders,  spoken  of  as 
bishops  and  deacons,  as  here  and  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Philippians  (i.  i)  as  well  as  in  the  Doctrine  of  the  Twelve 
Apostles,  presbyter  or  elder  being  sometimes  used  as 
synonymous  with  bishop.  This  distinction  between 
an  itinerant  and  a  stationary  ministry  appears  in  the 
First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  (xii.  28),  in  the  Epistle 
to  the  Ephesians  (iv.  ii),  and  perhaps  also  in  the  Acts 
of  the  Apostles  and  in  the  Epistles  of  St.  John.  In  the 
Doctrine  of  the  Twelve  Apostles  it  is  clearly  marked. 

2.  There  seems  to  have  been  a  further  distinction 
between  those  who  did,  and  those  who  did  not,  possess 
supernatural  prophetical  gifts.  The  title  of  prophet 
was  commonly,  but  perhaps  not  exclusively,  given  to 
those  who  possessed  this  gift :  and  the  Doctrine  of  the 
Twelve  Apostles  shows  a  great  respect  for  prophets. 
But  the  distinction  naturally  died  out  when  these 
supernatural  gifts  ceased  to  be  manifested.  During 
the  process  of  extinction  serious  difficulty  arose  as  to 
the  test  of  a  genuine  prophet.  Some  fanatical  persons 
believed  themselves  to  be  prophets,  and  some  dishonest 
persons  pretended  to  be  prophets,  when  they  were  not 
such.  The  office  appears  to  have  been  extinct  when 
Ignatius  wrote :  by  prophets  he  always  means  the 
prophets    of    the   Old    Testament,      Montanism    was 


Ii6  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 

probably  a  forlorn  attempt  to  revive  this  much  desired 
office  after  the  Church  as  a  whole  had  decided  against  it. 
Further  discussion  of  the  gift  of  prophecy  in  the  New 
Testament  will  be  found  in  a  previous  chapter  (vi.). 

3.  The  clergy  were  not  elected  by  the  congregation 
as  its  delegates  or  representatives,  deputed  to  perform 
functions  which  originally  could  be  discharged  by  any 
Christian.  They  were  appointed  by  the  Apostles  and 
their  successors  or  substitutes.  Where  the  congrega- 
tion selected  or  recommended  candidates,  as  in  the 
case  of  the  Seven  Deacons  (Acts  vi.  4 — 6),  they  did 
not  themselves  lay  hands  on  them.  The  typical  act 
of  laying  on  of  hands  was  always  performed  by  those 
who  were  already  ministers,  whether  apostles,  prophets, 
or  elders.  Whatever  else  was  still  open  to  the  laity,  this 
act  of  ordaining  was  not.  And  there  is  good  reason 
for  believing  that  the  celebration  of  the  Eucharist  also 
was  from  the  first  reserved  to  the  clergy,  and  that  all 
ministers,  excepting  prophets,  were  expected  to  use  a 
prescribed  form  of  words  in  celebrating  it. 

But,  although  much  still  remains  untouched,  this 
discussion  must  draw  to  a  close.  In  the  ideal  Church 
there  is  no  Lord's  Day  or  holy  seasons,  for  all  da3's 
are  the  Lord's,  and  all  seasons  are  holy  ;  there  are  no 
places  especially  dedicated  to  God's  worship,  for  the 
whole  universe  is  His  temple  ;  there  are  no  persons 
especially  ordained  to  be  His  ministers,  for  all  His 
people  are  priests  and  prophets.  But  in  the  Church  as 
it  exists  in  a  sinful  world,  the  attempt  to  make  all  times 
and  all  places  holy  ends  in  the  desecration  of  all  alike ; 
and  the  theory  that  all  Christians  are  priests  becomes 
indistinguishable  from  the  theory  that  none  are  such. 
In  this  matter  let  us  not  try  to  be  wiser  than  God, 
Whose   will   may   be    discerned   in    His    providential 


ii.  l-io.]     ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.         117 

guiding  of  His  Church  throughout  so  many  centuries. 
The  attempt  to  reproduce  Paradise  or  to  anticipate 
heaven  in  a  state  of  society  which  does  not  possess  the 
conditions  of  Paradise  or  heaven,  can  end  in  nothing 
but  disastrous  confusion. 

In  conclusion  the  following  weighty  words  are  grate- 
fully quoted.  They  come  with  special  force  from  one  who 
does  not  himself  belong  to  an  Episcopalian  Church. 

"By  our  reception  or  denial  of  priesthood  in  the 
Church,  our  entire  view  of  what  the  Church  is  must 
be  affected  and  moulded.  We  shall  either  accept  the 
idea  of  a  visible  and  organized  body,  within  which 
Christ  rules  by  means  of  a  ministry,  sacraments,  and 
ordinances  to  which  He  has  attached  a  blessing,  the 
fulness  of  which  ive  have  no  right  to  look  for  except 
through  the  channels  He  has  ordained  (and  it  ought  to 
be  needless  to  say  that  this  is  the  Presbyterian  idea), 
or  we  shall  rest  satisfied  with  the  thought  of  the 
Church  as  consisting  of  multitudes  of  individual  souls 
known  to  God  alone,  as  invisible,  unorganized,  with 
ordinances  blessed  because  of  the  memories  which 
they  awaken,  but  to  which  no  promise  of  present 
grace  is  tied,  with,  in  short,  no  thought  of  a  Body 
of  Christ  in  the  world,  but  only  of  a  spiritual  and 
heavenly  principle  ruling  in  the  hearts  and  regulating 
the  lives  of  men.  Conceptions  of  the  Church  so 
widely  different  from  each  other  cannot  fail  to  affect  in 
the  most  vital  manner  the  Church's  life  and  relation  to 
those  around  her.  Yet  both  conceptions  are  the  logical 
and  necessary  result  of  the  acceptance  or  denial  of 
the  idea  of  a  divinely  appointed  and  still  living  priest- 
hood among  men."  * 

*  Professor  W.  Milligan,  D.D.,  on  "The  Idea  of  the  Priesthood,"  in 
the  Expositor  for  July,  1888,  p.  '^, 


CHAPTER    XI. 

THE    APOSTLE'S   RULE   RESPECTING    SECOND   MAR- 
RIA  GES;  ITS  MEANING  AND  PRESENT  OBLIGA  TION. 

"The  husband  of  one  wife." — 1  Tim.  iii.  2. 

THE  Apostle  here  states,  as  one  of  the  first 
qualifications  to  be  looked  for  in  a  person  who 
is  to  be  ordained  a  bishop,  that  he  must  be  "  husband 
of  one  wife."  The  precise  meaning  of  this  phrase  will 
probably  never  cease  to  be  discussed.  But,  although 
it  must  be  admitted  that  the  phrase  is  capable  of 
bearing  several  meanings)  yet  it  cannot  be  fairly 
contended  that  the  meaning  is  seriously  doubtful.  The 
balance  of  probability  is  so  largely  in  favour  of  one 
of  the  meanings,  that  the  remainder  may  be  reasonably 
set  aside  as  having  no  valid  ground  for  being  supported 
in  competition  with  it. 

Three  passages  in  which  the  phrase  occurs  have  to 
be  considered  together^  and  these  have  to  be  compared 
with  a  fourth,  (i)  There  is  the  passage  before  us 
about  a  bishop,  (2)  another  in  ver.  12  about  deacons, 
and  (3)  another  in  Tit.  i.  6  about  elders  or  presbyters, 
whom  St.  Paul  afterwards  mentions  under  the  title 
of  bishop.  In  these  three  passages  we  have  it  plainly 
set  forth  that  Timothy  and  Titus  are  to  regard  it  as 
a  necessary  qualification  in  a  bishop  or  elder  or 
presbyter,  and  also  in  a  deacon,  that  he  should  be  a 


iii.2.j  RESPECTING  SECOND  MARRIAGES.  1 19 

''  man  of  one  woman "  or  *'  husband  of  one  wife " 
(yLtta?  <yvvaiK6^  avqp).  In  the  fourth  passage  (l  Tim. 
iv.  9)  he  gives  as  a  necessary  qualification  of  one  who 
is  to  be  placed  on  the  roll  of  church  widows,  that  she 
must  be  a  '^  woman  of  one  man "  or  "  wife  of  one 
husband"  (ei/o?  avhpo^  yuvrj).  This  fourth  passage 
is  of  much  importance  in  determining  the  meaning 
of  the  converse  expression  in  the  other  three  passages. 

There  are  four  main  interpretations  of  the  expression 
in  question. 

I.  That  which  the  phrase  at  once  suggests  to  a 
modern  mind, — that  the  person  to  be  ordained  bishop 
or  deacon  must  have  only  one  wife  and  not  more ; 
that  he  must  not  be  a  polygamist.  According  to  this 
interpretation,  therefore,  we  are  to  understand  the 
Apostle  to  mean,  that  a  Jew  or  barbarian  with  more 
wives  than  one  might  be  admitted  to  baptism  and 
become  a  member  of  the  congregation,  but  ought  not 
to  be  admitted  to  the  ministry.  This  explanation, 
which  at  first  sight  looks  simple  and  plausible,  will 
not  bear  inspection.  It  is  quite  true  that  polygamy 
in  St.  Paul's  day  still  existed  among  the  Jews.  Justin 
Martyr,  in  the  Dialogue  with  Trypho^  says  to  the  Jews, 
*'  It  is  better  for  you  to  follow  God  than  your  senseless 
and  blind  teachers,  who  even  to  this  day  allow  you 
each  to  have  four  and  five  wives "  (§  1 34).  But 
polygamy  in  the  Roman  Empire  must  have  been  rare. 
It  was  forbidden  by  Roman  law,  which  did  not  allow 
a  man  to  have  more  than  one  lawful  wife  at  a  time, 
and  treated  every  simultaneous  second  marriage,  not 
only  as  null  and  void,  but  infamous.  Where  it  was 
practised  it  must  have  been  practised  secretly.  It 
is  probable  that,  when  St.  Paul  wrote  to  Timothy 
and  Titus,  not  a  single  po.ygamist  had  been  converted 


120  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

to  the  Christian  faith.  Polygamists  were  exceedingly 
rare  inside  the  Empire,  and  the  Church  had  not  yet 
spread  beyond  it.  Indeed,  our  utter  ignorance  as  to 
the  way  in  which  the  primitive  Church  dealt  with 
polygamists  who  wished  to  become  Christians,  amounts 
to  something  like  proof  that  such  cases  were  extremely 
uncommon.  How  improbable,  therefore,  that  St.  Paul 
should  think  it  worth  while  to  charge  both  Timothy 
and  Titus  that  converted  polygamists  must  not  be 
admitted  to  the  office  of  bishop,  when  there  is  no 
likehhood  that  any  one  of  them  knew  of  a  single 
instance  of  a  polygamist  who  had  become  a  Chistian  ! 
On  these  grounds  alone  this  interpretation  of  the 
phrase  might  be  safely  rejected. 

But  these  grounds  do  not  stand  alone.  There  is 
the  convincing  evidence  of  the  converse  phrase,  "  wife 
of  one  husband."  If  men  with  more  than  one  wife 
were  very  rare  in  the  Roman  Empire,  what  are  we 
to  think  of  women  with  more  than  one  husband  ? 
Even  among  the  barbarians  outside  the  Empire,  such 
a  thing  as  a  plurality  of  husbands  was  regarded  as 
monstrous.  It  is  incredible  that  St.  Paul  could  have 
had  any  such  case  in  his  mind,  when  he  mentioned 
the  qualification  "  wife  of  one  husband."  Moreover, 
as  the  question  before  him  was  one  relating  to 
widows,  this  "wife  of  one  husband"  must  be  a  person 
who  at  the  time  had  no  husband.  The  phrase,  there- 
fore, can  only  mean  a  woman  who  after  the  death  of 
her  husband  has  not  married  again.  Consequently 
the  converse  expression,  "husband  of  one  wife," 
cannot  have  any  reference  to  polygamy. 

2.  Far  more  worthy  of  consideration  is  the  view  that 
what  is  aimed  at  in  both  cases  is  not  polygamy,  but 
divorce^     Divorce,  as  we  know  from  abundant  evidence, 


Hi.  2.]  RESPECTING  SECOND  MARRIAGES.  I2t 

was  very  frequent  both  among  the  Jews  and  the 
Romans  in  the  first  century  of  the  Christian  era. 
Among  the  former  it  provoked  the  special  condemnation 
of  Christ :  and  one  of  the  many  influences  which 
Christianity  had  upon  Roman  law  was  to  diminish  the 
facilities  for  divorce.  According  to  Jewish  practice  the 
husband  could  obtain  a  divorce  for  very  trivial  reasons ; 
and  in  the  time  of  St.  Paul  Jewish  women  sometimes 
took  the  initiative.  According  to  Roman  practice  either 
husband  or  wife  could  obtain  a  divorce  very  easily. 
Abundant  instances  are  on  record,  and  that  in  the  case 
of  people  of  high  character,  such  as  Cicero.  After  the 
divorce  either  of  the  parties  could  marry  again ;  and 
often  enough  both  of  them  did  so;  therefore  in  the 
Roman  Empire  in  St.  Paul's  day  there  must  have  been 
plenty  of  persons  of  both  sexes  who  had  been  divorced 
once  or  twice  and  had  married  again.  There  is  nothing 
improbable  in  the  supposition  that  quite  a  sufficent 
number  of  such  persons  had  been  converted  to  Christ- 
ianity to  make  it  worth  while  to  legislate  respecting 
them.  They  might  be  admitted  to  baptism  ;  but  they 
must  not  be  admitted  to  an  official  position  in  the 
Church.  A  regulation  of  this  kind  might  be  all  the 
more  necessary,  because  in  a  wealthy  capital  like 
Ephesus  it  would  probably  be  among  the  upper  and 
more  influential  classes  that  divorces  would  be  most 
frequent ;  and  from  precisely  these  classes,  when  any 
of  them  had  become  Christians,  officials  would  be 
likely  to  be  chosen.  This  explanation,  therefore,  of 
the  phrases  "  husband  of  one  wife  "  and  *'  wife  of  one 
husband  "  cannot  be  condemned,  Hke  the  first,  as  utterly 
incredible.  It  has  a  fair  amount  of  probability  :  but  it 
remains  to  be  seen  whether  another  explanation  (which 
really  includes  this  one)  has  not  a  far  greater  amount. 


122  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

3.  We  may  pass  over  without  much  discussion  the 
view  that  the  phrases  are  a  vague  way  of  indicating 
misconduct  of  any  kind  in  reference  to  marriage.  No 
doubt  such  misconduct  was  rife  among  the  heathen, 
and  the  Christian  Church  by  no  means  escaped  the 
taint,  as  the  scandals  in  the  Church  of  Corinth  and  the 
frequent  warnings  of  the  Apostles  against  sins  of  this 
kind  show.  But  when  St.  Paul  has  to  speak  of  such 
things  he  is  not  afraid  to  do  so  in  language  that  cannot 
be  misunderstood.  We  have  seen  this  already  in  the 
first  chapter  of  this  Epistle ;  and  the  fifth  chapters  of 
I  Corinthians,  Galatians,  and  Ephesians  supply  other 
examples.  We  may  safely  say  that  if  St.  Paul  had 
meant  to  indicate  persons  who  had  entered  into  illicit 
unions  before  or  after  marriage,  he  would  have  used 
much  less  ambiguous  language  than  the  phrases  under 
discussion. 

4.  There  remains  the  view,  which  from  the  first  has 
been  the  dominant  one,  that  these  passages  all  refer  to 
second  marriage  after  the  first  marriage  has  been  dissolved 
by  death.  A  widower  who  has  married  a  second  wife 
ought  not  to  be  admitted  to  the  ministry ;  a  widow  who 
has  married  a  second  husband  ought  not  to  be  placed 
on  the  roll  of  Church  widows.  This  interpretation  is 
reasonable  in  itself,  is  in  harmony  with  the  context  and 
with  what  St.  Paul  says  elsewhere  about  marriage,  and 
is  confirmed  by  the  views  taken  of  second  marriages  in 
the  case  of  clergy  by  the  early  Church. 

(a)  The  belief  that  St.  Paul  was  opposed  to  the 
ordination  of  persons  who  had  contracted  a  second 
marriage  is  reasonable  in  itself.  A  second  marriage, 
although  perfectly  lawful  and  in  some  cases  advisable, 
was  so  far  a  sign  of  weakness  ;  and  a  double  family 
would  in  many  cases  be  a  serious  hindrance  to  work. 


ui.2.1  RESPECTING  SECOND  MARRIAGES.  123 

The  Church  could  not  afford  to  enlist  any  but  its 
strongest  men  among  its  officers  ;  and  its  officers  must 
not  be  hampered  more  than  other  men  with  domestic 
cares.  Moreover,  the  heathen  certainl}^  felt  a  special 
respect  for  the  univtra,  the  woman  who  did  not  enter 
into  a  second  marriage ;  and  there  is  some  reason  for 
believing  that  second  marriages  were  sometimes  thought 
unfitting  in  the  case  of  men,  e.g.^  in  the  case  of  certain 
priests.  Be  that  as  it  may,  we  may  safely  conclude 
that,  both  by  Christians  and  heathen,  persons  who 
had  abstained  from  marrying  again  would  so  far  be 
more  respected  than  those  who  had  not  abstained. 

(b)  This  interpretation  is  in  harmony  with  the  con- 
text. In  the  passage  before  us  the  qualification  which 
immediately  precedes  the  expression,  "  husband  of  one 
wife,"  is  '' without  reproach";  in  the  Epistle  to  Titus 
it  is  "  blameless."  In  each  case  the  meaning  seems  to 
be  that  there  must  be  nothing  in  the  past  or  present 
life  of  the  candidate,  which  could  afterwards  with  any 
show  of  reason  be  urged  against  him  as  inconsistent 
with  his  office.  He  must  be  above  and  not  below  the 
average  of  men  ;  and  therefore  he  must  not  have  been 
twice  married. 

(c)  This  agrees  with  what  St.  Paul  says  elsewhere 
about  marriage.  His  statements  are  clear  and  con- 
sistent, and  it  is  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  there  is  any 
want  of  harmony  between  what  is  said  in  this  Epistle 
and  what  is  said  to  the  Corinthian  Church  on  this 
subject.  The  Apostle  strongly  upholds  the  lawfulness 
of  marriage  for  all  (i  Cor.  vii.  28,  36 ;  I  Tim.  iv.  3). 
For  those  who  are  equal  to  it,  whether  single  or  widowed, 
he  considers  that  their  remaining  as  they  are  is  the 
more  blessed  condition  (i  Cor.  vii.  i,  7,  8,  32,  34,  40; 
I  Tim.  V.  7).     But  so  few  persons  are  equal  to  this, 


124  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TlMOTHV, 

that  it  is  prudent  for  those  who  desire  to  marry  to  dt 
so,  and  for  those  who  desire  to  marry  again  to  do  so 
(i  Cor.  vii.  2  9,  39;  l  Tim.  v.  14).  These  being  his 
convictions,  is  it  not  reasonable  to  suppose,  that  in 
selecting  ministers  for  the  Church  he  would  look  for 
them  in  the  class  which  had  given  proof  of  morai 
strength  by  remaining  unmarried  or  by  not  marrying 
a  second  time.  In  an  age  of  such  boundless  licentious- 
ness continency  won  admiration  and  respect ;  and  a 
person  who  had  given  clear  evidence  of  such  self- 
control  would  have  his  moral  influence  thereby 
increased.  Few  things  impress  barbarous  and  semi- 
barbarous  people  more  than  to  see  a  man  having  full 
control  over  passions  to  which  they  themselves  are 
slaves.  In  the  terrific  odds  which  the  infant  Church 
had  to  encounter,  this  was  a  point  well  worth  turning 
'.o  advantage. 

And  here  we  may  note  St.  Paul's  wisdom  in  giving 
1  D  preference  to  those  who  had  not  married  at  all  over 
thDse  who  had  married  only  once.  Had  he  done  so, 
he  would  have  played  into  the  hands  of  those  heretics 
who  disparaged  wedlock.  And  perhaps  he  had  seen 
something  of  the  evils,  which  abounded  among  the 
celibate  priests  of  heathenism  It  is  quite  obvious, 
that,  although  he  in  no  way  discourages  celibacy 
among  the  clergy,  yet  he  assumes  that  among  them, 
as  among  the  laity,  marriage  will  be  the  rule  and 
abstaining  the  exception ;  so  much  so,  that  he  does 
not  think  of  giving  any  special  directions  for  the  guid- 
ance of  a  celibate  bishop  or  a  celibate  deacon.* 

*  As  the  Dictionary  of  Christian  Antiquities  (vol.  i.  p.  324)  has 
given  its  sanction  to  the  view  that  "  St.  Paul  required  the  presbyter- 
bishop  to  have  had  the  experience  of  marriage  and  with  at  least  a 
preference  for  those  who  had  brought  up  children  (l  Tim.  iii.  2,  4), 


ili.2.]  RESPECTING  SECOND  MARRIAGES.  I25 

5.  Lastly,  this  interpretation  of  the  phrases  in  ques- 
tion is  strongly  confirmed  by  the  views  of  leading 
Christians  on  the  subject  in  the  first  few  centuries, 
and  by  the  decrees  of  councils;  these  being  largely 
influenced  by  St.  Paul's  language,  and  therefore  being 
a  guide  as  to  what  his  words  were  then  supposed  to 
mean. 

Hermas,  Clement  of  Alexandria,  of  course  Tertullian, 
and  among  later  Fathers,  Chrysostom,  Epiphanius,  and 
Cyril,  all  write  in  disparagement  of  second  marriages, 
not  as  sin,  but  as  weakness.  To  marry  again  is  to 
fall  short  of  the  high  perfection  set  before  us  in  the 
Gospel  constitution.  Athenagoras  goes  so  far  as  to 
call  a  second  marriage  "  respectable  adultery,"  and  to 
say  that  one  who  thus  severs  himself  from  his  dead 
wife  is  an  "adulterer  in  disguise."  Respecting  the 
clergy,  Origen  says  plainly,  "  Neither  a  bishop,  nor  a 
presbyter,  nor  a  deacon,  nor  a  widow,  can  be  twice 
married."  The  canons  of  councils  are  not  less  plain, 
either  as  to  the  discouragement  of  second  marriages 
among  the  laity,  or  their  incompatibility  with  what  was 
then  required  of  the  clergy.  The  synods  of  Ancyra 
{Can.  19),  of  Neocaesarea  {Can.  3  and  7),  and  of 
Laodicea  {Can.  i)  subjected  lay  persons  who  married 
more  than  once  to  a  penalty.  This  penalty  seems  to 
have  varied  in  different  Churches ;  but  in  some  cases 

and  extended  the  requirement  even  to  the  deacons  of  the  Church 
(i  Tim.  iii.  1 1,  12),"  it  seems  to  be  worth  while  to  repeat  the  declara- 
tion of  Ellicott  and  Huther,  that  "the  strange  opinion  of  Bret- 
schneider,  that  (xlols  is  here  the  indefinite  article,  and  that  Paul  meant 
that  a  bishop  should  be  married,  hardly  needed  the  elaborate  refuta- 
tion which  is  accorded  to  it  by  Winer,  Grammar  of  New  Testament, 
III.  18  (Eng.  Tr.,  p.  146)."  Would  any  EngUshman  ever  say  "a 
bishop  must  have  one  wife,"  when  his  meaning  was  "  a  bishop  must 
have  a  wife  "  ? 


126  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

it  involved  excommunication  for  a  time.  The  Council 
of  Nic£ea,  on  the  other  hand,  makes  it  a  condition  that 
members  of  the  Puritan  sect  of  Cathari  are  not  to  be 
received  into  the  Church  unless  they  promise  in  writing 
to  communicate  with  those  who  have  married  a  second 
lime  {Can.  8).  The  Apostolic  Constitutions  (vi.  17)  and 
the  so-called  Apostolic  Canons  (17)  absolutely  forbid 
the  promotion  of  one  who  has  married  twice,  to  be  a 
bishop,  presbyter,  or  deacon  ;  and  the  Apostolic  Consti- 
tutions forbid  the  marriage  of  one  who  is  already  in 
Holy  Orders.  He  may  marry  once  before  he  is 
ordained  :  but  if  he  is  single  at  his  ordination  he  must 
remain  so  all  his  Hfe.  Of  course,  if  his  wife  dies,  he 
is  not  to  marry  again.  Even  singers,  readers,  and 
door-keepers,  although  they  may  marry  after  they  have 
been  admitted  to  office,  yet  are  in  no  case  to  marry  a 
second  time  or  to  marry  a  widow.  And  the  widow  of 
a  cleric  was  not  allowed  to  marry  a  second  time. 

All  these  rigorous  views  and  enactments  leave  little 
doubt  as  to  how  the  early  Church  understood  St.  Paul's 
language  :  viz.,  that  one  who  had  exhibited  the  weak- 
ness of  marrying  a  second  time  was  not  to  be  admitted 
to  the  ministry.  From  this  they  drew  the  inference 
that  one  who  was  already  in  orders  must  not  be  allowed 
to  marry  a  second  time.  And  from  this  they  drew  the 
further  inference  that  entering  into  a  marriage  contract 
at  all  was  inadmissible  for  one  who  was  already  a 
bishop,  presbyter,  or  deacon.  Marriage  was  not  a  bar 
to  ordination,  but  ordination  was  a  bar  to  marriage. 
Married  men  might  become  clergy,  but  the  higher 
orders  of  clergy  might  not  become  married. 

A  little  thought  will  show  that  neither  of  these  infer- 
ences follows  from  St.  Paul's  rule ;  and  we  have  good 
reason  for  doubting  whether  he  would  have  sanctioned 


iii2.J  RESPECTING  SECOND  MARRIAGES.  127 

either  of  them.  The  Apostle  rules  that  those  who  have 
shown  want  of  moral  strength  in  taking  a  second  wife 
are  not  to  be  ordained  deacons  or  presbyters.  But  he 
nowhere  says  or  hints  that,  if  they  find  in  themselves  a 
want  of  moral  strength  of  this  kind  after  their  ordina- 
tion, they  are  to  be  made  to  bear  a  burden  to  which 
they  are  unequal.  On  the  contrary,  the  general  prin- 
ciple, which  he  so  clearly  lays  down,  decides  the  case : 
^*  If  they  have  not  continency,  let  them  marry :  for  it 
is  better  to  marry  than  to  burn."  And  if  this  holds 
good  of  clergy  who  have  lost  their  first  wives,  it  holds 
good  at  least  as  strongly  of  those  who  were  unmarried 
at  the  time  of  their  ordination.  Those  Churches, 
therefore,  which,  like  our  own,  allow  the  clergy  to 
marry,  and  even  to  marry  a  second  time,  after  ordina- 
tion, may  rightly  claim  to  have  the  Ap'ostle  on  their 
side. 

But  there  are  Churches,  and  among  them  the  Church 
of  England,  which  disregard  the  Apostle's  directions,  in 
admitting  those  who  have  been  more  than  once  married 
to  the  diaconate,  and  even  to  the  episcopate.  What 
defence  is  to  be  made  of  an  apparent  laxity,  which 
seems  to  amount  to  lawlessness  ?  The  answer  is  that 
there  is  nothing  to  show  that  St.  Paul  is  giving  rules 
which  are  to  bind  the  Church  for  all  time.  It  is  quite 
possible  that  his  directions  are  given  '*  by  reason  of  the 
present  distress."  We  do  not  consider  ourselves 
bound  by  the  regulation,  which  has  far  higher  authority 
than  that  of  a  single  Apostle,  respecting  the  eating  of 
blood  and  of  things  strangled.  The  first  council,  at 
which  most  of  the  Apostles  were  present,  forbad  the 
eating  of  these  things.  It  also  forbad  the  eating  of 
things  offered  to  idols.  St.  Paul  himself  led  the 
way   in   showing   that   this   restriction  is   not  always 


t28  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHV. 

binding :  and  the  whole  Church  has  come  to  disregard 
the  other.  ''Why?  Because  in  none  of  these  cases 
is  the  act  sinful  in  itself.  While  the  Jewish  converts 
were  likely  to  be  scandalized  by  seeing  their  fellow- 
Christians  eating  blood,  it  was  expedient  to  forbid  it ; 
and  while  heathen  converts  were  likely  to  think  lightly 
of  idolatry,  if  they  saw  their  fellow-Christians  eating 
what  had  been  offered  in  sacrifice  to  an  idol,  it  was 
expedient  to  forbid  it.  When  these  dangers  ceased 
the  reason  for  the  enactment  ceased  ;  and  the  enact- 
ment was  rightly  disregarded.  The  same  principle 
applies  to  the  ordination  of  persons  who  have  been 
twice  married.  Nowadays  a  man  is  not  considered 
less  strong  than  his  fellows,  because  he  has  married  a 
second  time.  To  refuse  to  ordain  such  a  person  would 
be  to  lose  a  minister  at  a  time  when  the  need  of 
additional  ministers  is  great ;  and  this  loss  would  be 
without  compensation. 

And  we  have  evidence  that  in  the  primitive  Church 
the  Apostle's  rule  about  digamists  was  not  considered 
absolute.  In  one  of  his  Montanist  treatises  Tertullian 
taunts  the  Catholics  in  having  even  among  their  bishops 
men  who  had  married  twice,  and  who  did  not  blush 
when  the  Pastoral  Epistles  were  read;*  and  Hippolytus, 
in  his  fierce  attack  on  Callistus,  Bishop  of  Rome,  states 
that  under  him  men  who  had  been  twice  and  thrice 
married  were  ordained  bishops,  priests,  and  deacons. 
And  we  know  that  a  distinction  was  made  in  the  Greek 
Church  between  those  who  had  married  twice  as 
Christians,  and  those  who  had  concluded  the  second 
marriage  before  baptism.  The  latter  were  not  excluded 
from  ordination.     And  some  went  so  far  as  to  say  that 

*  De  Monog.,  xii. 


i;i.2.]  RESPECTING  SECOND  MARRIAGES.  ti9 

if  the  first  marriage  took  place  before  baptism,  and  the 
second  afterwards,  the  man  was  to  be  considered  as 
having  been  married  only  once.*  This  freedom  in 
interpreting  the  Apostle's  rule  not  unnaturally  led  to  its 
being,  in  some  branches  of  the  Church,  disregarded. 
St.  Paul  says,  **  Do  not  ordain  a  man  who  has  married 
more  than  once."  If  you  may  say,  "  This  man,  who 
has  married  more  than  once,  shall  be  accounted  as 
having  married  only  once  ;  "  you  may  equally  well  say 
*'  The  Apostle's  rule  was  a  temporary  one,  and  we  have 
the  right  to  judge  of  its  suitableness  to  our  times  and 
to  particular  circumstances."  We  may  feel  confidence 
that  in  such  a  matter  it  was  not  St.  Paul's  wish  to 
deprive  Churches  throughout  all  time  of  their  liberty  of 
judgment,  and  the  Church  of  England  is  thus  justified. 

*  See   DQllinger's   Hippolytus   and   Callistus    (pp.    129 — 147   Eng. 
Trafis.)  for  a  full  discussion  of  the  question. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

THE  RELATION  OF  HUMAN  CONDUCT  TO  THE 
MYSTERY  OF  GODLINESS. 

"These  things  write  1  unto  thee,  hoping  to  come  un'o  thee  shortly; 
but  if  I  tarry  long,  that  thou  mayest  know  how  men  ought  to  behave 
themselves  in  the  house  of  God,  which  is  the  Church  of  the  living 
God,  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth.  And  without  controversy 
great  is  the  mystery  of  godliness ;  He  who  was  manifested  in  the 
flesh,  justified  in  the  spirit,  seen  of  angels,  preached  among  the 
nations,  believed  on  in  the  world,  received  up  in  glory '' — I  Tim.  iii. 
14 — 16. 

• 

ST.  PAUL  here  makes  a  pause  in  the  Epistle.  He 
has  brought  to  a  close  some  of  the  principal  direc- 
tions which  he  has  to  give  respecting  the  preservation 
of  pure  doctrine,  the  conduct  of  public  worship,  and  the 
qualifications  for  the  ministry :  and  before  proceeding 
to  other  topics  he  halts  in  order  to  insist  upon  the 
importance  of  these  things,  by  pointing  out  what  is 
really  involved  in  them.  Their  importance  is  one 
main  reason  for  his  writing  at  all.  Although  he  hopes 
to  be  with  Timothy  again  even  sooner  than  might  be 
expected,  he  nevertheless  will  not  allow  matters  of  this 
gravity  to  wait  for  his  return  to  Ephesus.  For,  after 
all,  this  hope  may  be  frustrated,  and  it  may  be  a  long 
time  before  the  two  friends  meet  again  face  to  face. 
The  way  in  which  Christians  ought  to  behave  them- 
selves in  the  house  of  God  is  not  a  matter  which  can 
wait  indefinitely,  seeing  that  this  house  of  God  is  no 


m.i4-i6.]        THE  MYSTERY  OF  GODLINESS.  131 

lifeless  shrine  of  a  lifeless  image,  which  knows  nothing 
and  cares  nothing  about  what  goes  on  in  its  temple  ; 
but  a  congregation  of  immorta'  souls  and  of  bodies  that 
are  temples  of  the  living  God,  Who  will  destroy  him 
who  destroys  His  temple  (i  Cor.  iii.  17).  God's  house 
must  have  regulations  to  preserve  it  from  unseeming 
disorder.  The  congregation  which  belongs  to  the 
living  God  must  have  a  constitution  to  preserve  it  from 
faction  and  anarchy.  All  the  more  so,  seeing  that  to 
it  has  been  assigned  a  post  of  great  responsibility. 
Truth  in  itself  is  self-evident  and  self-sustained :  it 
needs  no  external  support  or  foundation.  But  truth  as 
it  is  manifested  to  the  world  needs  the  best  support 
and  the  firmest  basis  that  can  be  found  for  it.  And 
it  is  the  duty  and  privilege  of  the  Church  to  supply 
these.  God's  household  is  not  only  a  community 
which  in  a  solemn  and  special  way  belongs  to  the 
Hving  God  :  it  is  also  the  "pillar  and  ground  of  the 
truth."  These  considerations  show  how  vital  is  the 
question,  In  what  way  ought  one  to  behave  oneself  in 
this  community  ?  * 

For  the  truth,  to  the  support  and  establishment  of 
which  every  Christian  by  his  behaviour  in  the  Church 
is  bound  to  contribute,  is  indisputably  something  great 
and  profound.  By  the  admission  of  all,  the  mystery 
of  the  Christian  faith  is  a  deep  and  weighty  one ;  and 
the  responsibility  of  helping  or  hindering  its  establish- 

*  To  take  the  "  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth "  as  meaning 
Timothy  makes  sense,  but  not  nearly  such  goo&  sense  :  moreover,  it 
is  almost  certain  that  if  St.  Paul  had  meant  this,  he  would  have 
expressed  himself  differently.  There  is  no  intolerable  mixture  of 
metaphors  in  speaking  of  Christians  first  as  a  house  and  then  as  a 
pillar,  any  more  than  in  speaking  of  any  one  as  both  a  pillar  and  a 
basis.  In  vi.  9  we  have  the  covetous  falling  into  a  snare  and  hurtful 
lusts  such  as  drown  men. 


132  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

ment  is  proportionately  deep  and  weighty.  Other 
things  may  be  matter  of  dispute,  but  this  not.  "  With- 
out controversy  great  is  the  mystery  of  godhness." 

Why  does  St.  Paul  speak  of  the  Truth  as  "the  mystery 
of  godliness"?  In  order  to  express  both  the  Divine 
and  the  human  aspects  of  the  Christian  faith.  On  the 
Divine  side  the  Gospel  is  a  mystery,  a  disclosed  secret. 
It  is  a  body  of  truth  originally  hidden  from  man's 
knowledge,  to  which  man  by  his  own  unaided  reason 
and  abilities  would  never  be  able  to  find  the  way.  In 
one  word  it  is  a  revelation  :  a  communication  by  God 
to  men  of  Truth  which  they  could  not  have  discovered 
for  themselves.  ''  Mystery "  is  one  of  those  words 
which  Christianity  has  borrowed  from  paganism,  but 
has  consecrated  to  new  uses  by  gloriously  transfiguring 
its  meaning.  The  heathen  mystery  was  something 
always  kept  hidden  from  the  bulk  of  mankind ;  a  secret 
to  which  only  a  privileged  few  were  admitted.  It 
encouraged,  in  the  very  centre  of  religion  itself,  selfish- 
ness and  exclusiveness.  The  Christian  mystery,  on 
the  other  hand,  is  something  once  hidden,  but  now 
made  known,  not  to  a  select  few,  but  to  all.  The  term, 
therefore,  involves  a  splendid  paradox  :  it  is  a  secret 
revealed  to  every  one.  In  St.  Paul's  own  words  to  the 
Romans  (xvi.  25),  "the  revelation  of  the  mystery 
which  hath  been  kept  in  silence  through  times  eternal, 
but  now  is  manifested,  and  by  the  scriptures  of  the 
prophets,  according  to  the  commandment  of  the  eternal 
God,  is  made  known  unto  all  the  nations."  He  rarely 
uses  the  word  mystery  without  combining  with  it  some 
other  word  signifying  to  reveal,  manifest,  •  or  make 
known.* 

*  I  Cor.  ii.  I,  7,  XV.  51 ;  Epb.  i.  9,  iii,  3,  9,  vi.  19 ;  Col.  i.  26,  27,  ii« 
Z  iv.  3,  comp.  Rom.  xi.  25,  ai.d  see  Lightloot  on  Col.  L  26, 


iii.  I4-I6.]        THE  MYSTERY  OF  GODLINESS.  133 

But  the  Christian  faith  is  not  only  a  mystery  but  a 
"  mystery  of  godliness."  It  not  only  tells  of  the  bounty 
of  Almighty  God  in  revealing  His  eternal  counsels 
to  man,  but  it  also  tells  of  man's  obligations  in  con- 
sequence of  being  initiated.  It  is  a  mystery,  not  "of 
lawlessness  "  (2  Thess.  ii.  7),  but  "  of  godUness."  Those 
who  accept  it  "  profess  godliness " ;  profess  reverence 
to  the  God  who  has  made  it  known  to  them.  It  teaches 
plainly  on  what  principle  we  are  to  regulate  '  how 
men  ought  to  behave  themselves  in  the  household  of 
God."  The  Gospel  is  a  mystery  of  piety,  a  mystery 
of  reverence  and  of  religious  life.  Holy  itself,  and 
proceeding  from  the  Holy  One,  it  bids  its  recipients 
be  holy,  even  as  He  is  Holy  Who  gives  it. 

"  Who  was  manifested  in  the  flesh,  justified  in  the 
spirit,  seen  of  angels,  preached  among  the  nations, 
believed  on  in  the  world,  received  up  in  glory." 

After  the  text  about  the  three  Heavenly  Witnesses 
in  the  First  Epistle  of  St.  John,  no  disputed  reading 
in  the  New  Testament  has  given  rise  to  more  con- 
troversy than  the  passage  before  us.  Let  us  hope  that 
the  day  is  not  far  distant  when  there  will  be  no  more 
disputing  about  either  text.  The  truth,  though  still 
doubted,  especially  in  reference  to  the  passage  before 
us,  is  not  really  doubtful.  In  both  cases  the  reading 
of  the  A.V.  is  indefensible.  It  is  certain  that  St.  John 
never  wrote  the  words  about  the  "  three  that  bear 
witness  in  heaven " :  and  it  is  certain  that  St.  Paul 
did  not  write,  "  God  was  manifest  in  the  flesh,"  but 
*'  Who  was  manifested  in  the  flesh."  The  reading 
"  God  was  manifested  in  the  flesh "  appears  in  no 
Christian  writer  until  late  in  the  fourth  century,  and 
in  no  translation  of  the  Scriptures,  earlier  than  the 
seventh  or   eighth  century.     And  it  is  not   found  in 


134  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY, 

any  of  the  five  great  primary  MSS.,  except  as  a  cor- 
rection made  by  a  later  scribe,  who  knew  of  the  reading 
'*  God  was  manifested,"  and  either  preferred  it  to  the 
other,  or  at  least  wished  to  preserve  it  as  an  alter- 
native reading,  or  as  an  interpretation.  Even  so  cautious 
and  conservative  a  commentator  as  the  late  Bishop 
Wordsworth  of  Lincoln  declares  that  "  the  preponde- 
rance of  testimony  is  overwhelming  "  against  the  reading 
^'Go<3?was  manifested  in  the  flesh."  In  an  old  Greek 
MS.,  it  would  require  only  two  small  strokes  to  turn 
*'Who"  into  ^'God";  and  this  alteration  would  be 
a  tempting  one,  seeing  that  the  masculine  ''  Who " 
after  the  neuter  "  mystery,"  looks  harsh  and  un- 
natural. * 

But  here  we  come  upon  a  highly  interesting  con- 
sideration. The  words  that  follow  look  like  a  quotation 
from  some  primitive  Christian  hymn  or  confession. 
The  rhythmical  movement  and  the  paralleHsm  of  the 
six  balanced  clauses,  of  which  each  triplet  forms  a 
climax,  points  to  some  such  fact  as  this.  It  is  possible 
that  we  have  here  a  fragment  of  one  of  the  very  hymns 
which,  as  Pliny  the  Younger  tells  the  Emperor  Trajan, 
the  Christians  were  accustomed  to  sing  antiphonally  at 
daybreak  to  Christ  as  a  God.t  Such  a  passage  as 
this  might  well  be  sung  from  side  to  side,  line  by  line 
or  triplet  by  triplet,  as  choirs  still  chant  the  Psalms 
in  our  churches. 

"  Who  was  manifested  in  the  flesh, 

"  Justified  in  the  spirit, 

"  Seen  of  angels, 

*  Cf.  Col.  i.  27,  which  throws  much  light  on  this  passage ;  and  also 
Col.  ii.  2.  In  some  MSS.  and  Versions  the  "Who"  has  been  changed 
into  "  which,"  in  order  to  make  the  construction  less  harsh. 

I  Carmen  Christo  quasi  deo  dicere  secum  invicem  (Plin.,  Ep.  x.  97). 


iii.  I4-I6.]        THE  MYSTERY  OF  GODLINESS.  I35 

"  Preached  among  the  nations, 

"  Believed  on  in  the  world, 

"  Received  up  in  glory." 

Let  us  assume  that  this  very  reasonable  and  attrac- 
tive conjecture  is  correct,  and  that  St.  Paul  is  here 
quoting  from  some  well-known  form  of  words.  Then 
the  *'  Who  "  with  which  the  quotation  begins  will  refer 
to  something  in  the  preceding  lines  which  are  not 
quoted.  How  natural,  then,  that  St.  Paul  should  leave 
the  ''  Who "  unchanged,  although  it  does  not  fit  on 
grammatically  to  his  own  sentence.  But  in  any 
case  there  is  no  doubt  as  to  the  antecedent  of  the 
*'Who."  ''The  mystery  of  godliness"  has  for  its 
centre  and  basis  the  life  of  a  Divine  Person ;  and  the 
great  crisis  in  the  long  process  by  which  the  mystery 
was  revealed  was  reached  when  this  Divine  Person 
"was  manifested  in  the  flesh."  That  in  making  this 
statement  or  quotation  the  Apostle  has  in  his  mind 
the  Gnostics  who  "teach  a  different  doctrine"  (i.  3), 
is  quite  possible,  but  is  by  no  means  certain.  The 
"  manifestation  "  of  Christ  in  the  flesh  is  a  favourite 
topic  with  him,  as  with  St.  John,  and  is  one  of  the 
points  in  which  the  two  Apostles  not  only  teach  the 
same  doctrine,  but  teach  it  in  the  same  language.  The 
fact  that  he  had  used  the  word  "  mystery  "  would  be 
quite  enough  to  make  him  speak  of  "manifestation," 
even  if  there  had  been  no  false  teachers  who  denied 
or  explained  away  the  fact  of  the  Incarnation  of  the 
Divine  Son.  The  two  words  fit  into  one  another 
exactly.  "  Mystery,"  in  Christian  theology,  implies 
something  which  once  was  concealed  but  has  now  been 
made  known  ;  "  manifest "  implies  making  known  what 
had  once  been  concealed.  An  historical  appearance  of 
One  Who  had  previously  existed^  but  had  been  kept  from 


136  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY, 

the  knowledge  of  the  world,  is  what  is  meant  by,  "  Who 
was  manifested  in  the  flesh." 

"Justified  in  the  spirit."  Spirit  here  cannot  mean 
the  Holy  Spirit,  as  the  A.V.  would  lead  us  to  suppose. 
"In  spirit"  in  this  clause  is  in  obvious  contrast  to 
"  in  flesh "  in  the  previous  clause.  And  if  "  flesh  '* 
means  the  material  part  of  Christ's  nature,  "spirit" 
means  the  immaterial  part  of  His  nature,  and  the  higher 
portion  of  it.  His  flesh  was  the  sphere  of  His  mani- 
festation :  His  spirit  was  the  sphere  of  His  justification. 
Thus  much  seems  to  be  clear.  But  what  are  we  to 
understand  by  His  justification  ?  And  how  did  it  take 
place  in  His  spirit  ?  These  are  questions  to  which  a 
great  variety  of  answers  have  been  given ;  and  it  would 
be  rash  to  assert  of  any  one  of  them  that  it  is  so 
satisfactory  as  to  be  conclusive. 

Christ's  human  nature  consisted,  as  ours  does,  of 
three  elements,  body,  soul,  and  spirit.  The  body  is 
the  flesh  spoken  of  in  the  first  clause.  The  soul 
(^vyr)),  as  distinct  from  the  spirit  (irvevfiay,  is  the  seat 
of  the  natural  affections  and  desires.  It  was  Christ's 
soul  that  was  troubled  at  the  thought  of  impending 
suffering.  "  My  soul  is  exceeding  sorrowful,  even  unto 
death  "  (Matt.  xxvi.  38  ;  Mark  xiv.  34).  "  Now  is  My 
soul  troubled;  and  what  shall  I  say?  Father,  save  Me 
from  this  hour"  (John  xii.  27).  The  spirit  is  the  seat 
of  the  religious  emotions  :  it  is  the  highest,  innermost 
part  of  man's  nature  ;  the  sanctuary  of  the  temple.  It 
was  in  His  spirit  that  Christ  was  affected  when  the 
presence  of  moral  evil  distressed  Him.  He  was  moved 
with  indignation  in  His  spirit  when  He  saw  the  hypo- 
critical Jews  mingling  their  sentimental  lamentations 
with  the  heartfelt  lamentations  of  Martha  and  Mary  at 
the  grave  of  Lazarus  (John  xi.  33).     It  was  in    His 


iii.i4-i6.]     ■    THE  MYSTERY  OF  GODLINESS.  137 

spirit  also  that  He  was  troubled  when,  as  Judas  sat  at 
table  with  Him  and  possibly  next  to  Him,*  He  said, 
"  Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you,  that  one  of  you  shall 
betray  Me"  (John  xiii.  21).  This  spiritual  part  of  His 
nature,  which  was  the  sphere  of  His  most  intense 
suffering,  was  also  the  sphere  of  His  most  intense  joy 
and  satisfaction.  As  moral  evil  distressed  His  spirit, 
so  moral  innocence  delighted  it.  In  a  way  that  none 
of  us  can  measure,  Jesus  Christ  knew  the  joy  of  a  good 
conscience.  The  challenge  which  He  made  to  the  JewSj 
"  Which  of  you  convicteth  Me  of  sin  ?  "  was  one  which 
He  could  make  to  His  own  conscience.  It  had  nothing 
against  Him  and  could  never  accuse  Him.  He  was 
justified  when  it  spake,  and  clear  when  it  judged  (Rom. 
iii.  4 ;  Ps.  li.  4).  Perfect  Man  though  He  was,  and 
manifested  in  weak  and  suffering  flesh.  He  was  never- 
theless "justified  in  the  spirit."  t 

"Seen  of  angels."  It  is  impossible  to  determine  the 
precise  occasion  to  which  this  refers.  Ever  since  the 
Incarnation  Christ  has  been  visible  to  the  angels  ;  but 
something  more  special  than  the  fact  of  the  Incarnation 
seems  to  be  alluded  to  here.  The  wording  in  the 
Greek  is  exactly  the  same  as  in  ^^  He  appeared  to 
Cephas  ;  then  to  the  twelve ;  then  He  appeared  to  above 
five  hundred  brethren  at  once,  of  whom  the  greater 
part  remain  until  now,  but  some  are  fallen  asleep ;  then 
He  appeared  to  James ;  then  to  all  the  Apostles  ;  last 
of  all,  as  to  one  born  out  of  due  time,  He  appeared  to 

*  St.  John  reclined  on  our  Lord's  right ;  Judas  seems  to  have  been 
on  His  left.  He  must  have  been  very  close  to  be  able  to  hear  without 
the  others  hearing. 

t  Cf.  the  partly  parallel  passage  I  Pet.  iii.  18:  "Put  to  death  in 
the  flesh,  but  quickened  in  the  spirit."  But  "flesh"  and  "spirit" 
have  no  preposition  in  the  original  Greek  in  I  Pet.  iii.  i8:  here 
each  has  the  kv. 


138  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

me  also"  (i  Cor.  xv.  5 — 8).  Here,  therefore,  we  might 
translate  ^^  appeared  to  angels."  What  appearance,  or 
appearances,  of  the  incarnate  Word  to  the  angelic 
host  can  be  intended  ? 

The  question  cannot  be  answered  with  any  certainty  ; 
but  with  some  confidence  we  can  venture  to  say  what 
can  not  be  intended.  "  Appeared  to  angels "  can 
scarcely  refer  to  the  angelic  appearances  which  are 
recorded  in  connexion  with  the  Nativity,  Temptation, 
Agony,  Resurrection,  and  Ascension  of  Christ.  On 
those  occasions  angels  appeared  to  Christ  and  to 
others,  not  He  to  angels.  With  still  greater  confidence 
we  may  reject  the  suggestion  that  "angels"  here 
means  either  the  Apostles,  as  the  angels  or  messengers 
of  Christ,  or  evil  spirits,  as  the  angels  of  Satan.  It 
may  be  doubted  whether  anything  at  all  parallel  to 
either  explanation  can  be  found  in  Scripture.  More- 
over, "  appeared  to  evil  spirits "  is  an  interpretation 
which  makts  the  passage  more  difficult  than  it  was 
before.  The  manifestation  of  Christ  to  the  angelic 
host  either  at  the  Incarnation  or  at  the  return  to  glory 
is  a  far  more  reasonable  meaning  to  assign  to  the 
words. 

The  first  three  clauses  of  this  primitive  hymn  may 
thus  be  summed  up.  The  mystery  of  godliness  has 
been  revealed  to  mankind,  and  revealed  in  a  historical 
Person,  Who,  while  manifested  in  human  flesh,  was 
in  His  inmost  spirit  declared  free  from  all  sin.  And 
this  manifestation  of  a  perfectly  righteous  Man  was 
not  confined  to  the  human  race.  The  angels  also 
witnessed  it  and  can  bear  testimony  to  its  reality. 

The  remaining  triplet  is  more  simple  :  the  meaning 
of  each  one  of  its  clauses  is  clear.  The  same  Christ, 
who  was  seen  of  angels,  was  also  preached  among  the 


iii.  I4-I6.1  '     THE  MYSTERY  OF  GODLINESS.  139 

nations  of  the  earth  and  believed  on  in  the  world  :  yet 
He  Himself  was  taken  up  from  the  earth  and  received 
once  more  in  glory.  The  propagation  of  the  faith  in 
an  ascended  Christ  is  here  plainly  and  even  enthu- 
siastically stated.  To  all  the  nations,  to  the  whole 
world,  this  glorified  Saviour  belongs.  All  this  adds 
emphasis  to  the  question  "how  men  ought  to  behave 
themselves  in  the  house  of  God"  in  which  such  truths 
are  taught  and  upheld. 

It  is  remarkable  how  many  arrangements  of  these 
six  clauses  are  possible,  all  making  excellent  sense. 
We  may  make  them  into  two  triplets  of  independent 
lines  :  or  we  may  couple  the  two  first  lines  of  each 
triplet  together  and  then  make  the  third  lines  corre- 
spond to  one  another.  In  either  case  each  group  begins 
with  earth  and  ends  with  heaven.  Or  again,  we  may 
make  the  six  lines  into  three  couplets.  In  the  first 
couplet  flesh  and  spirit  are  contrasted  and  combined; 
in  the  second,  angels  and  men;  in  the  third,  earth  and 
heaven. 

Yes,  beyond  dispute  the  mystery  of  godliness  is  a 
great  one.  The  revelation  of  the  Eternal  Son,  which 
imposes  upon  those  who  accept  it  a  holiness  of  which 
His  sinlessness  must  be  the  model,  is  something  awful 
and  profound.  But  He,  Who  along  with  every  temp- 
tation which  He  allows  "  makes  also  the  way  of  escape," 
does  not  impose  a  pattern  for  imitation  without  at  the 
same  time  granting  the  grace  necessary  for  struggling 
towards  it.  To  reach  it  is  impossible — at  any  rate  in 
this  life.  But  the  consciousness  that  we  cannot  reach 
perfection  is  no  excuse  for  aiming  at  imperfection. 
The  sinlessness  of  Christ  is  immeasurably  beyond  us 
here ;  and  it  may  be  that  even  in  eternity  the  loss 
caused  by  our  sins  in  this  life  will  never  be  entirely 


U6  TtIR  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

cancelled.  But  to  those  who  have  taken  up  their  cross 
daily  and  followed  their  Master,  and  who  have  washed 
their  robes  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb,  will  be  granted  hereafter  to  stand  sinless  "  before 
the  throne  of  God  and  serve  Him  day  and  night  in  His 
temple."  Having  followed  Christ  on  earth,  they  will 
follow  Him  still  more  in  heaven.  Having  shared  His 
sufferings  here,  they  will  share  His  reward  there. 
They  too  will  be  "  seen  of  angels  "  and  "  received  up  in 
glory." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  COMPARATIVE  VALUE  OF  BODILY  EXERCISE 
AND  OF  GODLINESS. 

"  Exercise  thyself  unto  godliness :  for  bodily  exercise  is  profitable  for 
a  little ;  but  godliness  is  profitable  for  all  things,  having  promise  of 
the  life  which  now  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come  " — I  Tim.  iv.  7,  8. 

IT  is  almost  impossible  to  decide  what  St.  Paul  here 
means  by  ^'bodily  exercise."  Not  that  either  the 
phrase  or  the  passage  in  which  it  occurs  is  either 
difficult  or  obscure.  But  the  phrase  may  mean  either 
of  two  things,  both  of  which  make  excellent  sense  in 
themselves,  and  both  of  which  fit  the  context. 

At  the  beginning  of  this  chapter  the  Apostle  warns 
Timothy  against  apostates  who  shall  "give  heed  to 
seducing  spirits  and  doctrines  of  devils  .  .  .  for- 
bidding to  marry  and  commanding  to  abstain  from 
meats."  St.  Paul  has  in  his  mind  those  moral  teachers 
who  made  bodily  mortifications  the  road,  not  to  self- 
discipline,  but  to  self-effacement ;  and  who  taught  that 
such  things  were  necessary,  not  because  our  bodies  are 
prone  to  evil,  but  because  they  exist  at  all.  To  have 
a  body,  they  held,  was  a  degradation  :  and  such  a 
possession  was  a  curse,  a  burden,  and  a  shame. 
Instead  of  believing,  as  every  Christian  must,  that  a 
human  body  is  a  very  sacred  thing,  to  be  jealously 
guarded  from  all  that  may  harm  or  pollute  it,  these 
philosophers  held  that  it  was  worse  than  worthless,  fit 


!4i  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

for  nothing  but  to  be  trampled  upon  and  abused.  That 
it  may  be  sanctified  here  and  be  glorified  hereafter, — 
that  it  may  be  the  temple  of  God's  Holy  Spirit  now 
and  be  admitted  to  share  the  blessedness  of  Christ's 
ascended  humanity  in  the  world  to  come, — they  could 
not  and  would  not  believe.  It  must  be  made  to 
feel  its  own  vileness.  It  must  be  checked,  and 
thwarted,  and  tormented  into  subjection,  until  the 
blessed  time  should  come  when  death  should  release 
the  unhappy  soul  that  was  linked  to  it  from  its  loath- 
some and  intolerable  companion. 

It  cannot,  of  course,  for  a  moment  be  supposed  that 
St.  Paul  would  admit  that  "  bodily  exercise "  of  this 
suicidal  kind  was  "profitable  "  even  "  for  a  little."  On 
the  contrary,  as  we  have  seen  already,  he  condemns 
the  whole  system  in  the  very  strongest  terms.  It  is 
a  blasphemy  against  God's  goodness  and  a  libel  on 
human  nature.  But  some  persons  have  thought  that 
the  Apostle  may  be  alluding  to  practices  which, 
externally  at  any  rate,  had  much  resemblance  to  the 
practices  which  he  so  emphatically  condemns.  He 
may  have  in  his  mind  those  fasts,  and  vigils,  and  other 
forms  of  bodily  mortification,  which  within  prudent 
limits  and  when  sanctified  by  humility  and  prayer,  are 
a  useful,  if  not  a  necessary  discipline  for  most  of  us. 
And  it  has  been  thought  that  Timothy  himself  may 
have  been  going  to  unwise  lengths  in  such  ascetic 
practices  :  for  in  this  very  letter  we  find  his  affectionate 
master  charging  him,  "  Be  no  longer  a  drinker  of  water, 
but  use  a  little  wine  for  thy  stomach's  sake  and  thine 
often  infirmities." 

This  then  is  one  possible  meaning  of  the  Apostle's 
words  in  the  passage  before  us.  Discipline  of  the 
body  by  means  of  a  severe  rule  of  life  is  profitable  for 


iv.7,8.]     VALUE  OF  EXERCISE  AND   GODLINESS.        !43 

something  :  but  it  is  not  everything.  It  is  not  even 
the  chief  thing,  or  anything  approaching  to  the  chief 
thing.  The  chief  thing  is  godliness.  To  the  value  of 
bodily  exercise  of  this  kind  there  are  limits,  and  rather 
narrow  limits  :  it  "  is  profitable  for  a  little^  To  the 
value  of  godliness  there  are  no  limits  :  it  is  "  profitable 
for  all  things."  Mortifications  of  the  body  may  preserve 
us  from  sins  of  the  flesh  :  but  they  are  no  certain 
protection  even  against  these.  They  are  no  protection 
at  all — sometimes  they  are  the  very  reverse  of  protec- 
tion— against  sins  of  self-complacency  and  spiritual 
pride.  Asceticism  may  exist  without  godliness;  and 
godliness  may  exist  without  asceticism.  Bodily  morti- 
fications may  be  useful ;  but  they  may  also  be  harmful 
to  both  soul  and  body.  Godliness  must  always  be 
useful  to  both  ;  can  never  be  harmful  to  either. 

But  it  is  quite  possible  to  understand  the  expression 
''  bodily  exercise/'  in  the  sense  in  which  the  phrase  is 
most  commonly  used  in  ordinary  conversation  among 
ourselves.  In  the  text  which  we  are  considering  it 
may  mean  that  exercise  of  the  body  which  we  are 
accustomed  to  take,  some  of  us  of  necessity,  because 
the  work  by  which  we  earn  our  daily  bread  involves  a 
great  deal  of  physical  exertion ;  some  of  us  for  health's 
sake,  because  our  work  involves  a  great  deal  of  sitting 
still ;  some  of  us  for  pleasure,  because  bodily  exercise 
of  various  kinds  is  delightful  to  us.  This  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Apostle's  statement,  like  the  other  interpre- 
tation, makes  good  sense  of  itself  and  fits  the  context. 
And  whereas  that  was  in  harmony  with  the  opening 
words  of  the  chapter,  this  fits  the  immediate  context. 

St.  Paul  has  just  said  "  Exercise  thyself  unto  godli- 
ness." In  using  the  expression  '^  Exercise  thyself" 
(7U/xi/aJe  aeavTov)  he  was   of  course  borrowing,  as  he 


144  THk  FIRST  EPiSTLF:  TO   TIMOTHY. 

SO  constantly  does  borrow,  from  the  language  which 
was  used  respecting  gymnastic  contests  in  the  public 
games.  The  Christian  is  an  athlete,  who  must  train 
himself  and  exercise  himself  for  a  lifelong  contest.  He 
has  to  wrestle  and  fight  with  the  powers  of  evil,  that 
he  may  win  a  crown  of  glory  that  fadeth  not  away. 
How  natural,  then,  that  the  Apostle,  having  just 
spoken  of  spiritual  exercise  for  the  attainment  of  god- 
liness, should  go  on  to  glance  at  bodily  exercise,  in 
order  to  point  out  the  superiority  of  the  one  over  the 
other.  The  figurative  would  easily  suggest  the  literal 
sense ;  and  it  is  therefore  quite  lawful  to  take  the  words 
**  bodily  exercise  "  in  their  most  literal  sense.  Perhaps 
we  may  go  further  and  say,  that  this  is  just  one  of 
those  cases  in  which,  because  the  literal  meaning  makes 
excellent  sense,  the  literal  meaning  is  to  be  preferred. 
Let  us  then  take  St.  Paul's  words  quite  literally  and 
see  what  meaning  they  will  yield. 

"  Bodily  exercise  is  profitable  for  a  little."  It  is  by 
no  means  a  useless  thing.  In  its  proper  place  it  has  a 
real  value.  Taken  in  moderation  it  tends  to  preserve 
health  and  increase  strength.  It  may  sometimes  be 
the  means  of  gaining  for  ourselves  and  for  the  circle  to 
which  we  belong  praise  and  distinction.  It  makes  us 
more  capable  of  aiding  ourselves  and  others  in  times  of 
physical  danger.  It  may  even  be  the  means  of  enabling 
us  to  save  life.  By  taking  us  out  of  ourselves  and 
turning  our  thoughts  into  new  channels,  it  is  an  instru- 
ment of  mental  refreshment,  and  enables  us  to  return 
to  the  main  business  of  our  lives  with  increased  in- 
tellectual vigour.  And  beyond  all  this,  if  kept  within 
bounds,  it  has  a  real  moral  value.  It  sometimes  keeps 
us  out  of  mischief  by  giving  us  innocent  instead  of 
harmful  recreation.     And  bodily  training  and  practice, 


iv.7.8.]   Value  of  exercise  and  godliness.      145 

if  loyally  carried  out,  involve  moral  gains  of  another 
kind.  Dangerous  appetites  have  to  be  kept  in  check, 
personal  wishes  have  to  be  sacrificed,  good  temper  has 
to  be  cultivated,  if  success  is  to  be  secured  for  ourselves 
or  the  side  to  which  we  belong.  All  this  is  "profitable" 
in  a  very  real  degree.  But  the  limits  to  all  these  good 
results  are  evident ;  and  they  are  somewhat  narrow. 
They  are  confined  to  this  life,  and  for  the  most  part  to 
the  lower  side  of  it ;  and  they  are  by  no  means  certain. 
Only  indirectly  does  bodily  exercise  yield  help  to  the 
intellectual  and  spiritual  parts  of  our  nature ;  and  as 
regards  both  of  them  it  may  easily  do  more  harm  than 
good.  Like  excessive  meat  and  drink,  it  may  brutalize 
instead  of  invigorating.  Have  we  not  all  of  us  seen 
men  whose  extravagant  devotion  to  bodily  exercise  has 
extinguished  almost  all  intellectual  interests,  and  appar- 
ently all  spiritual  interests  also  ? 

But  there  are  no  such  drawbacks  to  the  exercise  of 
godliness.  "  Godliness  is  profitable  for  all  things, 
having  promise "  not  only  "  of  the  life  which  now  is, 
but  of  that  which  is  to  come."  Its  value  is  not  confined 
to  the  things  of  this  world,  although  it  enriches  and  >^o  oo^t 
glorifies  them  all.  And,  unlike  bodily  exercise,  its  good  ~y^-  r^^ 
results  are  certain.  There  is  no  possibility  of  excess. 
We  may  be  unwise  in  our  pursuit  of  godliness,  as  in 
our  pursuit  of  bodily  strength  and  activity ;  but  we 
cannot  have  too  much  exercise  in  godliness,  as  we 
easily  can  in  athletics.  Indeed,  we  cannot  with  any 
safety  lay  aside  the  one,  as  we  not  only  can,  but  must, 
frequently  lay  aside  the  other.  And  we  need  to  bear 
this  simple  truth  in  mind.  Most  of  us  are  willing  to 
admit  that  godliness  is  an  excellent  thing  for  attaining 
to  a  peaceful  death ;  but  we  show  little  evidence  that 
we  are  convinced  of  its  being  necessary  for  spending  a 

10 


146  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

happy  life.     We  look  upon  it  as  a  very  suitable  thing 
for  the  weak,  the  poor,  the  sickly,  the  sorrowful,  and 
perhaps  also  for  sentimental  persons  who  have  plenty 
of  leisure  time  at  their  disposal.     We  fail  to  see  that 
there  is  much  need  for  it,  or  indeed  much  room  for  it, 
in  the  lives  of  busy,  capable,  energetic,  and  practical 
men  of  the  world.     In  other  words,  we  are  not  at  all 
convinced  of  the  truth   of  the  Apostle's    words,   that 
*'  Godliness  is  profitable  for  all  things,"  and  we  do  not 
act  as  if  they  had  very  much  interest  for  us.     They 
express  a  truth  which  is  only  too  likely  to  be  crowded 
out  of  sight  and  out  of  mind  in  this  bustling  age.     Let 
us  be  as  practical  as  our  dispositions  lead  us  and  our 
surroundings  require  us  to  be  ;  but  let  us  not  forget 
that  godliness  is  really  the  most  practical  of  all  things. 
It  lays  hold  on  a  man's  whole  nature.     It  purifies  his 
body,  it  illumines  and  sanctifies  his  intellect;  it  braces 
his  will.     It  penetrates  ^into  every  department  of  life, 
whether  business  or  amusement,  social  intercourse  or 
private  meditation.     Ask  the  physicians,  ask  employers 
of  labour,  ask  teachers  in  schools  and  universities,  ask 
statesmen   and    philosophers,    what    their    experience 
teaches    them    respecting    the    average    merits   of  the 
virtuous  and  the  vicious.     They  will  tell  you  that  the 
godly  person   has  the   healthiest   body,    is   the   most 
faithful  servant,  the  most  painstaking  student,  the  best 
citizen,    the   happiest   man.     A   man  who    is    formed, 
reformed,  and    informed  by  religion  will  do  far  more 
effectual  work  in  the  world  than  the  same  man  without 
religion.     He  works' with  less  friction,  because  his  care 
is  cast  upon  his  heavenly  Father;  and  with  more  confi- 
dence, because  his  trust  is  placed  on  One  much  more 
sure    than  himself.     Moreover,  in  the  long  run  he  is 
trusted  and  respected.     Even  those  who  not  only  abjure 


iv.7,8.]     VALUE   OF  EXERCISE  AND   GODLINESS.        I47 

religion  in  themselves,  but  ridicule  it  in  others,  cannot 
get  rid  of  their  own  experience.  They  find  that  the 
godly  man  can  be  depended  upon,  where  the  merely 
clever  man  cannot;  and  they  act  in  accordance  with 
this  experience.  Nor  does  the  profitableness  of  godli- 
ness end  with  the  possession  of  blessings  so  inestimable 
as  these.  It  holds  out  rich  promises  respecting  future 
happiness,  and  it  gives  an  earnest  and  guarantee  for  it. 
It  gives  a  man  the  blessing  of  a  good  conscience, 
which  is  one  of  our  chief  foretastes  of  the  blessedness 
which  awaits  us  in  the  world  to  come. 

Let  us  once  for  all  get  rid  of  the  common,  but  false 
notion  that  there  is  anything  unpractical,  anything  weak 
or  unmanly,  in  the  life  of  holiness  to  which  Christ  has 
called  us,  and  of  which  He  has  given  us  an  example : 
and  by  the  lives  which  we  lead  let  us  prove  to  others 
that  this  vulgar  notion  is  a  false  one.  Nothing  has 
done  more  harm  to  the  cause  of  Christianity  than  the 
misconceptions  which  the  world  has  formed  as  to  what 
Christianity  is  and  what  it  involves.  And  these  miscon- 
ceptions are  largely  caused  by  the  unworthy  lives  which 
professing  Christians  lead.  And  this  unworthiness 
is  of  two  kinds.  There  is  first  the  utter  worldliness, 
and  often  the  downright  wickedness,  of  many  who  are 
not  only  baptized  Christians,  but  who  habitually  keep 
up  some  of  the  external  marks  of  an  ordinary  Christian 
life,  such  as  going  to  church,  having  family  prayers, 
attending  religious  meetings,  and  the  like.  And  perhaps 
the  worst  form  of  this  is  that  in  which  religion  is  made 
a  trade,  and  an  appearance  of  godliness  is  assumed  in 
order  to  make  money  out  of  a  reputation  for  sanctity. 
Secondly,  there  is  the  seriously  mistaken  way  in  which 
many  earnest  persons  set  to  work  in  order  to  attain  to 
true  godliness.     By  their  own  course  of  life  they  lead 


148  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

people  to  suppose  that  a  religious  life,  the  life  of  an 
earnest  Christian,  is  a  dismal  thing  and  an  unpractical 
thing.  They  wear  a  depressed  and  joyless  look ;  they 
not  only  abstain  from,  but  leave  it  to  be  supposed  that 
they  condemn,  many  things  which  give  zest  and  bright- 
ness to  life,  and  which  the  Gospel  does  not  condemn. 
In  their  eagerness  to  show  their  conviction  as  to  the 
transcendent  importance  of  spiritual  matters,  they 
exhibit  a  carelessness  and  slovenliness  in  reference  to 
the  affairs  of  this  life,  which  is  exceedingly  trying  to 
all  those  who  have  to  work  with  them.  Thus  they 
stand  forward  before  the  world  as  conspicuous  evidence 
that  godliness  is  not  "  profitable  for  all  things."  The 
world  is  only  too  ready  to  take  note  of  evidence  which 
points  to  a  conclusion  so  in  harmony  with  its  own 
predilections.  It  is,  and  has  been  from  the  beginning, 
prejudiced  against  religion  ;  and  its  adherents  are  quick 
to  seize  upon,  and  make  the  most  of,  anything  which 
appears  to  justify  these  prejudices.  "  In  a  world  such 
as  this,"  they  say,  '*  so  full  of  care  and  suffering,  we 
cannot  afford  to  part  with  anything  which  gives  bright- 
ness and  refreshment  to  life.  A  religion  which  tells 
us  to  abjure  all  these  things,  and  live  perpetually  as  if 
we  were  at  the  point  of  death  or  face  to  face  with  the 
Day  of  Judgment,  may  be  all  very  well  for  monks  and 
nuns,  but  is  no  religion  for  the  mass  of  mankind. 
Moreover,  this  is  a  busy  age.  Most  of  us  have  much 
to  do  ;  and,  if  we  are  to  live  at  all,  what  we  have  to  do 
must  be  done  quickly  and  thoroughly.  That  means 
that  we  must  give  our  minds  to  it ;  and  a  religion 
which  tells  us  that  we  must  not  give  our  minds  to 
our  business,  but  to  other  things  which  it  says  are  of 
far  greater  importance,  is  no  religion  for  people  who 
have  to  make  their  way  in  the  world  and  keep  them- 


iv.7,8.]     VALUE   OF  EXERCISE  AND   GODLINESS.        149 

selves  and  their  children  from  penury.  We  flatly 
refuse  to  accept  a  gospel  wliich  is  so  manifestly  out  of 
harmony  with  the  conditions  of  average  human  life." 
This  charge  against  Christianity  is  a  very  old  one :  we 
find  it  taken  up  and  answered  in  some  of  the  earliest 
defences  of  the  gospel  which  have  come  down  to  us. 
The  unhappy  thing  is,  not  that  such  charges  should  be 
made,  but  that  the  Hves  of  Christian  men  and  women 
should  prove  that  there  is  at  least  a  prima  facie  case  for 
bringing  such  accusations.  The  early  Christians  had 
to  confront  the  charge  that  they  were  joyless,  useless 
members  of  society  and  unpatriotic  citizens.  They 
maintained  that,  on  the  contrary,  they  were  the  happiest 
and  most  contented  of  men,  devoted  to  the  well-being 
of  others,  and  ready  to  die  for  their  country.  They 
kept  aloof  from  many  things  in  which  the  heathen 
indulged,  not  because  they  were  pleasures,  but  because 
they  were  sinful.  And  there  were  certain  services  which 
they  could  not,  without  grievous  sin,  render  to  the 
State.  In  all  lawful  matters  no  men  were  more  ready 
than  they  were  to  be  loyal  and  law-abiding  citizens. 
In  this,  as  in  any  other  matter  of  moral  conduct,  they 
were  quite  willing  to  be  compared  with  their  accusers 
or  any  other  class  of  men.  On  which  side  were  to  be 
found  those  who  were  bright  and  peaceful  in  their  lives, 
who  cherished  their  kindred,  who  took  care  of  the 
stranger,  who  succoured  their  enemies,  who  shrank  not 
from  death  ? 

A  practical  appeal  of  this  kind  is  found  to  be  in  the 
long  run  far  more  telling  than  expositon  and  argument. 
It  may  be  impossible  to  get  men  to  listen  to,  or  take 
interest  in,  statements  as  to  the  principles  and  require- 
ments of  the  Christian  religion.  You  may  fail  to  con- 
vince them  that  its  precepts  and  demands  are  neither 


150  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

superstitious  nor  unreasonable.     But  you  can  always 
show  them  what  a  life  of  godliness  really  is ; — that  it 
]    is  full  of  joyousness,  and  that  its  joys  are  neither  fitful 
\  I    nor  uncertain ;  that  it  is  no  foe  to  what  is  bright  and 

;  beautiful,  and  is  neither  morose  in  itself  nor  apt  to 
frown  at  hghtheartedness  in  others;  that  it  does  not 
interfere  with  the  most  strenuous  attention  to  business 
and  the  most  capable  despatch  of  it.  Men  refuse  to 
listen  to  or  to  be  moved  by  words;  but  they  cannot 
help  noticing  and  being  influenced  by  facts  which  are 
all  round  them  in  their  daily  hves.  So  far  as  man  can 
judge,  the  number  of  vicious,  mean,  and  unworthy  Hves 
is  far  in  excess  of  those  which  are  pure  and  lofty. 
Each  one  of  us  can  do  something  towards  throwing  the 
balance  the  other  way.  We  can  prove  to  all  the  world 
that  godliness  is  not  an  unreality,  and  does  not  make 
those  who  strive  after  it  unreal ;  that  it  is  hostile 
neither  to  joyousness  nor  to  capable  activity ;  that,  on 
the  contrary,  it  enhances  the  brightness  of  all  that  is 
really  beautiful  in  life,  while  it  raises  to  a  higher  power 
all  natural  gifts  and  abilities ;  that  the  Apostle  was 
saying  no  more  than  the  simple  truth  when  he  declared 
that  it  is  '^  profitable  for  all  things. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WOMEN.— THE 
CHURCH  WIDOW. 

"Honour  widows  that  are  widows  indeed.  But  if  any  widow 
hath  children  or  grandchildren,  let  them  learn  first  to  shew  piety 
towards  their  own  family,  and  to  requite  their  parents  :  for  this  is 
acceptable  in  the  sight  of  God.  .  .  .  Let  none  be  enrolled  as  a 
widow  under  threescore  years  old,  having  been  the  wife  of  one  man, 
well  reported  of  for  good  works  " — I  Tim,  v.  3,  4,  9. 

THE  subject  of  this  fifth  chapter  is  "  The  Behaviour 
of  the  Pastor  towards  the  older  and  younger 
men  and  women  in  the  congregation."  Some  have 
thought  that  it  forms  the  main  portion  of  the  letter, 
to  which  all  the  rest  is  more  or  less  introductory  or 
supplementary.  But  the  structure  of  the  letter  cannot 
easily  be  brought  into  harmony  with  this  view.  It 
seems  to  be  much  nearer  the  truth  to  say  that  the 
unpremeditated  way  in  which  this  subject  is  introduced, 
cannot  well  be  explained  unless  we  assume  that  we  are 
reading  a  genuine  letter,  and  not  a  forged  treatise. 
The  connexion  of  the  different  subjects  touched  upon 
is  loose  and  not  always  very  obvious.  Points  are 
mentioned  in  the  order  in  which  they  occur  to  the 
writer's  mind  without  careful  arrangement.  After  the 
personal  exhortations  given  at  the  close  of  Chapter  iv., 
which  have  a  solemnity  that  might  lead  one  to  suppose 
that  the  Apostle  was  about  to  bring  his  words  to  a 


152  fHE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

close,  he  makes  a  fresh  start  and  treats  of  an  entirely 
new  subject  which  has  occurred  to  him. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  guess  what  has  suggested  the 
new  subject.  The  personal  exhortations  with  which 
the  previous  section  ends  contain  these  words,  "  Let 
no  man  despise  thy  youth;  but  be  thou  an  ensample 
to  them  that  believe,  in  word,  in  manner  of  life,  in  love, 
in  faith,  in  purity.'*  Timothy  is  not  to  allow  the  fact 
that  he  is  younger  than  many  of  those  over  whom 
he  is  set  to  interfere  with  the  proper  discharge  of  his 
duties.  He  is  to  give  no  one  a  handle  for  charging 
him  with  want  of  gravity  or  propriety.  Sobriety  of 
conduct  is  to  counterbalance  any  apparent  lack  of 
experience.  But  St.  Paul  remembers  that  there  is 
another  side  to  that.  Although  Timothy  is  to  behave 
in  such  a  way  as  never  to  remind  his  flock  of  his 
comparative  youthfulness,  yet  he  himself  is  always  to 
bear  in  mind  that  he  is  still  a  young  man.  This  is 
specially  to  be  remembered  in  dealing  with  persons 
of  either  sex  who  are  older  than  himself,  and  in  his 
bearing  towards  young  women.  St.  Paul  begins  with 
the  treatment  of  older  men  and  returns  to  this  point 
again  later  on.  Between  these  two  passages  about 
men  he  gives  directions  for  Timothy's  guidance  re- 
specting the  women  in  his  flock,  and  specially  respecting 
widows.  This  subject  occupies  more  than  half  the 
chapter  and  is  of  very  great  interest,  as  being  our  chief 
source  of  information  respecting  the  treatment  of 
widows  in  the  early  Church.  Commentators  are  by 
no  means  unanimous  in  their  interpretation  of  the 
details  of  the  passage,  but  it  is  believed  that  the  ex- 
planation which  is  now  offered  is  in  harmony  with  the 
original  Greek,  consistent  with  itself,  and  not  contra- 
dicted by  anything  which  is  known  from  other  sources. 


v.3,4,9]  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WOMEN.   153 

It  is  quite  evident  that  more  than  one  kind  of  widow 
is  spoken  of:  and  one  of  the  questions  which  the 
passage  raises  is — How  many  classes  of  widows  are 
indicated  ?  We  can  distinguish  four  kinds ;  and  it 
seems  probable  that  the  Apostle  means  to  give  us  four 
kinds. 

1.  There  is  "the  widow  indeed  (77  oVtcd?  xvP^)-^ 
Her  characteristic  is  that  she  is  ''  desolate/'  />.,  quite 
alone  in  the  world.  She  has  not  only  lost  her  husband, 
but  she  has  neither  children  nor  any  other  near  relation 
to  minister  to  her  necessities.  Her  hope  is  set  on  God, 
to  Whom  her  prayers  ascend  night  and  day.  She  is 
contrasted  with  two  other  classes  of  widow,  both  of 
whom  are  in  worldly  position  better  off  than  she  is, 
for  they  are  not  desolate  or  destitute ;  yet  one  of  these  is 
far  more  miserable  than  the  widow  indeed,  because  the 
manner  of  life  which  she  adopts  is  so  unworthy  of  her. 

2.  There  is  the  widow  who  ''  hath  children  or  grand- 
children." Natural  affection  will  cause  these  to  take 
care  that  their  widowed  parent  does  not  come  to  want. 
If  it  does  not,  then  they  must  learn  that  "  to  show 
piety  towards  their  own  family  and  to  requite  their 
parents "  is  a  paramount  duty,  and  that  the  congrega- 
tion must  not  be  burdened  with  the  maintenance  of 
their  mother  until  they  have  first  done  all  they  can 
for  her.  To  ignore  this  plain  duty  is  to  deny  the  first 
principles  of  Christianity,  which  is  the  Gospel  of  love 
and  duty,  and  to  fall  below  the  level  of  the  unbelievers, 
most  of  whom  recognized  the  duty  of  providing  fcr 
helpless  parents.  Nothing  is  said  of  the  character  of 
the  widow  who  has  children  or  grandchildren  to  support 
her ;  but,  like  the  widow  indeed,  she  is  contrasted  with 
the  third  class  of  widow,  and  therefore  we  infer  that 
her  character  is  free  from  reproach. 


154  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

3.  There  is  the  widow  who  "giveth  herself  to 
pleasure."  Instead  of  continuing  in  prayers  and  sup- 
plications night  and  day,  she  continues  in  frivolity  and 
luxury,  or  worse.  Of  her,  as  of  the  Church  of  Sardis, 
it  may  be  said,  "  Thou  hast  a  name  that  thou  livest, 
and  thou  art  dead"  (Rev.  iii.    i). 

4.  There  is  the  "  enrolled  "  widow ;  i.e.y  one  whose 
name  has  been  entered  on  the  Church  rolls  as  such. 
She  is  a  *'  widow  indeed  "  and  something  more.  She 
is  not  only  a  person  who  needs  and  deserves  the  support 
of  the  congregation,  but  has  special  rights  and  duties. 
She  holds  an  office,  and  has  a  function  to  discharge. 
She  is  a  widow,  not  merely  as  having  lost  her  husband, 
but  as  having  been  admitted  to  the  company  of  those 
bereaved  women  whom  the  Church  has  entrusted  with 
a  definite  portion  of  Church  work.  This  being  so, 
something  more  must  be  looked  to  than  the  mere  fact 
of  her  being  alone  in  the  world.  She  must  be  sixty 
years  of  age,  must  have  had  only  one  husband,  have 
had  experience  in  the  bringing  up  of  children,  and  be 
well  known  as  devoted  to  good  works.  If  she  has 
these  qualifications,  she  may  be  enrolled  as  a  Church 
widow ;  but  it  does  not  follow  that  because  she  has 
them  she  will  be  appointed. 

The  work  to  which  these  elderly  women  had  to 
devote  themselves  was  twofold  :  (i)  Prayer,  especially 
intercession  for  those  in  trouble ;  (2)  Works  of  mercy, 
especially  ministering  to  the  sick,  guiding  younger 
Christian  women  in  lives  of  holiness,  and  winning  over 
heathen  women  to  the  faith.  These  facts  we  learn 
from  the  frequent  regulations  respecting  widows  during 
the  second,  third,  and  fourth,  centuries.  It  was  ap- 
parently during  the  second  century  that  the  order  of 
widjws  flourished  most. 


v.3»4t9-]  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WOMEN.   155 

This  primitive  order  of  Church  widows  must  be 
distinguished  from  the  equally  primitive  order  of 
deaconesses,  and  from  a  later  order  of  widows,  which 
grew  up  side  by  side  with  the  earlier  order,  and  con- 
tinued long  after  the  earlier  order  had  ceased  to  exist. 
But  it  would  be  contrary  to  all  probability,  and  to  all 
that  we  know  about  Church  offices  in  the  Apostolic 
and  sub-Apostolic  age,  to  suppose  that  the  distinctions 
between  different  orders  of  women  were  as  marked  in 
the  earliest  periods  as  they  afterwards  became,  or  that 
they  were  precisely  the  same  in  all  branches  of  the 
Church. 

It  has  been  sometimes  maintained  that  the  Church 
widow  treated  of  in  the  passage  before  us  is  identical 
with  the  deaconess.  The  evidence  that  the  two  orders 
were  distinct  is  so  strong  as  almost  to  amount  to  de- 
monstration. 

I.  It  is  quite  possible  that  this  very  Epistle  supplies 
enough  evidence  to  make  the  identification  very  im- 
probable. If  the  "  women "  mentioned  in  the  section 
about  deacons  (iii.  11)  are  deaconesses,  then  the 
qualifications  for  this  office  are  quite  different  from  the 
qualifications  for  that  of  a  widow,  and  are  treated  of 
in  quite  diff'erent  sections  of  the  letter.  But  even  if 
deaconesses  are  not  treated  of  at  all  in  that  passage, 
the  limit  of  age  seems  quite  out  of  place,  if  they  are 
identical  with  the  widows.  *  In  the  case  of  the  widows 
it  was  important  to  enrol  for  this  special  Church  work 
none  who  were  likely  to  wish  to  marry  again.  And 
as  their  duties  consisted  in  a  large  measure  in  prayer, 
advanced    age    was    no    impediment,    but    rather    the 

*  The  Council  in  Trullo  (a.d.  691),  the  great  authority  for  dis- 
cipline in  the  Greek  Church,  fixed  the  age  of  forty  for  admission  to 
the  otfice  of  a  deaconess  and  sixty  for  that  of  a  widow. 


155  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO    TIMOTHY, 

contrary.  But  the  work  of  the  deaconess  was  for  the 
most  part  active  work,  and  it  would  be  unreasonable 
to  admit  no  one  to  the  office  until  the  best  part  of  her 
working  life  was  quite  over. 

2.  The  difference  in  the  work  assigned  to  them 
points  in  the  same  direction.  As  already  sated,  the 
special  work  of  the  widow  was  intercessory  prayer 
and  ministering  to  the  sick.  The  special  work  of  the 
deaconess  was  guarding  the  women's  door  in  the 
churches^  seating  the  women  in  the  congregation,  and 
attending  women  at  baptisms.*  Baptism  being  usually 
administered  by  immersion,  and  adult  baptism  being 
very  frequent,  there  was  much  need  of  female  at- 
tendants. 

3.  At  her  appointment  the  deaconess  received  the 
imposition  of  hands,  the  widow  did  not.  The  form 
of  prayer  for  the  ordination  of  a  deaconess  is  given 
in  the  Apostolical  Constitutions  (viii.  19,  20),  and  is 
worthy  of  quotation.  *'  Concerning  a  deaconess,  I 
Bartholomew  make  this  constitution  :  O  Bishop,  thou 
shalt  lay  thy  hands  upon  her  in  the  presence  of  the 
presbytery  and  of  the  deacons  and  deaconesses,  and 
shalt  say ;  O  Eternal  God,  the  Father  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Creator  of  man  and  of  woman ;  Who 
didst  replenish  with  the  Spirit  Miriam,  Deborah,  Anna, 
and  Huldah ;  Who  didst  not  disdain  that  Thy  Only 
begotten  Son  should  be  born  of  a  woman  ;  Who  also 
in  the  tabernacle  of  the  testimony  and  in  the  temple 

*  In  the  middle  recension  of  the  Ignatian  Epistles  we  read  "I  salute 
the  keepers  of  the  holy  doors,  the  deaconesses  in  Christ "  {Ant.  xii.). 
"  Let  the  deaconesses  stand  at  the  entries  of  the  women  "  {Apost. 
Const,  ii.  57,  58).  "For  we  stand  in  need  of  a  woman,  a  deaconess, 
for  many  necessities,  and  first  in  the  baptism  of  women,"  etc.— (/i. 
iii.  15.) 


^.3,4.9-]  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WOMEN.   157 

didst  ordain  women  to  be  keepers  of  Thy  holy  gates; — 
look  down  now  also  upon  this  Thy  servant,  who  is  to 
be  ordained  to  the  office  of  a  deaconess.  Grant  her 
Thy  Holy  Spirit  and  cleanse  her  from  all  defilement  of 
flesh  and  spirit,  *  that  she  may  worthily  discharge  the 
work  which  is  committed  to  her,  to  Thy  glory  and  the 
praise  of  Thy  Christ,  with  Whom  be  glory  and  adoration 
to  Thee  and  to  the  Holy  Spirit  for  ever  and  ever. 
Amen."  Nothing  of  the  kind  is  found  for  the  appoint- 
ment of  a  Church  widow. 

4.  It  is  quite  in  harmony  with  the  fact  that  the 
deaconesses  were  ordained,  while  the  widows  were 
not,  that  the  widows  are  placed  under  the  deaconesses. 
"The  widows  ought  to  be  grave,  obedient  to  their 
bishops,  their  presbyters,  and  their  deacons  ;  and 
besides  these  to  the  deaconesses,  with  piety,  reverence, 
and  fear."t 

5.  The  deaconess  might  be  either  an  unmarried 
woman  or  a  widow,  and  apparently  the  former  was 
preferred.  "  Let  the  deaconess  be  a  pure  virgin  ;  or  at 
least  a  widow  who  has  been  but  once  married."^  But, 
although  such  things  did  occur,  Tertullian  protests 
that  it  is  a  monstrous  irregularity  to  admit  an  un- 
married woman  to  the  order  of  widows. §  Now,  if 
widows  and  deaconesses  were  identical,  unmarried 
"  widows "  would  have  been  quite  common,  for  un- 
married deaconesses  were  quite  common.  Yet  he 
speaks  of  the  one  case  of  a  "  virgin  widow  "  which  had 
come  under  his  notice  as  a  marvel,  and  a  monstrosity, 
and  a  contradiction  in  terms.  It  is  true  that  Ignatius 
in  his  letter  to  the  Church  of  Smyrna  uses  language 
which  has  been  thought  to  support  the  identification  : 

*  I  Cor.  vii.  I.  X  A  post.  Const,  vi.  17. 

f  Apost.  Const,  iii.  7.  §  De  Virg.  Vel.,  ix. 


158  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

**  I  salute  the  households  of  my  brethren  with  their 
wives  and  children,  and  the  virgins  who  are  called 
widows"*  But  it  is  incredible  that  at  Smyrna  all  the 
Church  widows  were  unmarried ;  and  it  is  equally 
improbable  that  Ignatius  should  send  a  salutation  to  the 
unmarried  ^'  widows  "  (if  such  there  were),  and  ignore 
the  rest.  His  language,  however,  may  be  quite  easily 
explained  without  any  such  strange  hypothesis.  He 
may  mean  *'  I  salute  those  who  are  called  widows,  but 
whom  one  might  really  regard  as  virgins."  And  in 
support  of  this  interpretation  Bishop  Lightfoot  quotes 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  who  sa3^s  that  the  continent 
man,  like  the  continent  widow,  becomes  again  a  virgin ; 
and  Tertullian,  who  speaks  of  continent  widows  as  being 
in  God's  sight  maidens  (Deo  stmt  puellce),  and  as  for  a 
second  time  virgins.t  But,  whatever  Ignatius  may 
have  meant  by  ''  the  virgins  who  are  called  widows," 
we  may  safely  conclude  that  neither  in  his  time,  any 
more  than  that  of  St.  Paul,  were  the  widows  identical 
with  the  deaconesses. 

The  later  order  of  widows,  which  grew  up  side 
by  side  with  the  Apostolic  order,  and  in  the  end  sup- 
planted, or  at  any  rate  survived,  the  older  order,  came 
into  existence  about  the  third  century.  It  consisted  of 
persons  who  had  lost  their  husbands  and  made  a  vow 
never  to  marry  again.  From  the  middle  of  the  second 
century  or  a  little  later  w^e  find  a  strong  feeling  against 
second  marriages  springing  up,  and  this  feeling  was 
very  possibly  intensified  when  the  Gospel  came  in  con- 
tact with  the  German  tribes,  among  whom  the  feeling 
already  existed  independently  of  Christianity.  In 
this  new  order  of  widows  who  had  taken  the  vow  of 

*  Smyrn.  xiii. 
f  Strom.,  vii.  12 ;  Ad  Uxor.,  I.  iv, ;  De  Exh,  Cast,  i. 


v.3»4,9.]  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WO  MEM.   159 

continence  there  was  no  restriction  of  age,  nor  was 
it  necessary  that  they  should  be  persons  in  need  of  the 
alms  of  the  congregation.  In  the  Apostolic  order  the 
fundamental  idea  seems  to  have  been  that  destitute 
widows  ought  to  be  supported  by  the  Church,  and  that 
in  return  for  this,  those  of  them  who  were  qualified 
should  do  some  special  Church  work.  In  the  later 
order  the  fundamental  idea  was  that  it  was  a  good 
thing  for  a  widow  to  remain  unmarried,  and  that  a  vow 
to  do  so  would  help  her  to  persevere. 

In  commanding  Timothy  to  "  honour  widows  that 
are  widows  indeed "  the  Apostle  states  a  principle 
which  has  had  a  wide  and  permanent  influence  not 
only  on  ecclesiastical  discipline  but  upon  European 
legislation.  Speaking  of  the  growth  of  the  modern 
idea  of  a  will,  by  which  a  man  can  regulate  the  descent 
of  his  property  inside  and  outside  his  family,  Sir 
Henry  Maine  remarks,  that  ^'  the  exercise  of  the 
Testamentary  power  was  seldom  allowed  to  interfere 
with  the  right  of  the  widow  to  a  definite  share,  and 
of  the  children  to  certain  fixed  proportions,  of  the 
devolving  inheritance.  The  shares  of  the  children,  as 
their  amount  shov;s,  were  determined  by  the  authority 
of  Roman  law.  The  provision  for  the  widow  was  attribut- 
able to  the  exertions  of  the  Church,  which  never  relaxed 
its  solicitude  for  the  interest  of  wives  surviving  their 
husbands — winning,  perhaps,  one  of  the  most  arduous 
of  its  triumphs  when,  after  exacting  for  two  or  three 
centuries  an  express  promise  from  the  husband  at 
marriage  to  endow  his  wife,  it  at  length  succeeded 
in  engrafting  the  principle  of  Dower  on  the  Customary 
Law  of  all    Western    Europe."*     This  is  one   of  the 

♦  Ancient  Law,  p.  224, 


t6o  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHV. 

numerous  instances  in  which  the  Gospel,  by  insisting 
upon  the  importance  of  some  humane  principle,  has 
contributed  to  the  progress  and  security  of  the  best 
elements  in  civilization. 

Not  only  the  humanity,  but  the  tact  and  common 
sense  of  the  Apostle  is  conspicuous  throughout  the 
whole  passage,  whether  we  regard  the  general  directions 
respecting  the  bearing  of  the  young  pastor  towards  the 
different  sections  of  his  flock,  old  and  young,  male  and 
female,  or  the  special  rules  respecting  widows.  The 
sum  and  substance  of  it  appears  to  be  that  the  pastor 
is  to  have  abundance  of  zeal  and  to  encourage  it  in 
others,  but  he  is  to  take  great  care  that,  neither  in 
himself  nor  in  those  whom  he  has  to  guide,  zeal  out- 
runs discretion.  Well-deserved  rebukes  may  do  far 
more  harm  than  good,  if  they  are  administered  without 
respect  to  the  position  of  those  who  need  them.  And 
in  all  his  ministrations  the  spiritual  overseer  must 
beware  of  giving  a  handle  to  damaging  criticism.  He 
must  not  let  his  good  be  evil  spoken  of.  So  also  with 
regard  to  the  widows.  No  hard  and  fast  rule  can  be 
safely  laid  down.  Almost  everything  depends  upon 
circumstances.  On  the  whole,  the  case  of  widows  is 
analogous  to  that  of  unmarried  women.  For  those  who 
have  strength  to  forego  the  married  state,  in  order  to 
devote  more  time  and  energy  to  the  direct  service  of  God, 
it  is  better  to  remain  unmarried,  if  single,  and  if  widows, 
not  to  marry  again.  But  there  is  no  peculiar  blessed- 
ness in  the  unmarried  state,  if  the  motive  for  avoiding 
matrimony  is  a  selfish  one,  e.g.,  to  avoid  domestic  cares 
and  duties  and  have  leisure  for  personal  enjoyment. 
Among  younger  women  the  higher  motive  is  less  likely 
to  be  present,  or  at  any  rate  to  be  permanent.  They 
are  so  likely  sooner  or  later  to  desire  to  marry,  that  it 


v.3,4,9.]  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WOMElSt.   l6i 

will  be  wisest  not  to  discourage  them  to  do  so.  On 
the  contrary,  let  it  be  regarded  as  the  normal  thing 
that  a  young  woman  should  marry,  and  that  a  young 
widow  should  marry  again.  It  is  not  the  best  thing 
for  them,  but  it  is  the  safest.  Although  the  highest 
work  for  Christ  can  best  be  done  by  those  who  by 
remaining  single  have  kept  their  domestic  ties  at  a 
minimum,  yet  young  women  are  more  likely  to  do  use- 
ful work  in  society,  and  are  less  likely  to  come  to  harm, 
if  they  marry  and  have  children.  Of  older  women  this 
is  not  true.  Age  itself  is  a  considerable  guarantee: 
and  a  woman  of  sixty,  who  is  willing  to  give  such  a 
pledge,  may  be  encouraged  to  enter  upon  a  life  of  per- 
petual widowhood.  But  there  must  be  other  quaUfica- 
tions  as  well,  if  she  wishes  to  be  enrolled  among  those, 
who  not  only  are  entitled  by  their  destitute  condition  to 
receive  maintenance  from  the  Church,  but  by  reason 
of  their  fitness  are  commissioned  to  undertake  Church 
work.  And  these  qualifications  must  be  carefully 
investigated.  It  would  be  far  better  to  reject  some, 
who  might  after  all  have  been  useful,  than  to  run  the 
risk  of  admitting  any  who  would  exhibit  the  scandal  of 
having  been  supported  by  the  Church  and  specially 
devoted  to  Christian  works  of  mercy,  and  of  having 
after  all  returned  to  society  as  married  women  with 
ordinary  pleasures  and  cares. 

One  object  throughout  these  directions  is  the  economy 
of  Christian  resources.  The  Church  accepts  the  duty 
which  it  inculcates  of  "  providing  for  its  own."  But 
it  ought  not  to  be  burdened  with  the  support  of  any 
but  those  who  are  really  destitute.  The  near  relations 
of  necessitous  persons  must  be  taught  to  leave  the 
Church  free  to  relieve  those  who  have  no  near  relations 
to  support  then..     Secondly,  so  far  as  is  possible,  those 

II 


i62  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO    TIMOTHY. 

who  are  relieved  by  the  alms  of  the  congregation  must 
be  encouraged  to  make  some  return  in  undertaking 
Church  work  that  is  suitable  to  them.  St.  Paul  has  no 
idea  of  pauperizing  people.  So  long  as  they  can,  they 
must  maintain  themselves.  When  they  have  ceased  to 
be  able  to  do  this,  they  must  be  supported  by  their 
children  or  grandchildren.  If  they  have  no  one  to  help 
them,  the  Church  must  undertake  their  support ;  but 
both  for  their  sake  as  well  as  for  the  interests  of  the 
community,  it  must,  if  possible,  make  the  support 
granted  to  be  a  return  for  work  done  rather  than  mere 
alms.  Widowhood  must  not  be  made  a  plea  for  being 
maintained  in  harmful  idleness.  But  the  point  which 
the  Apostle  insists  on  most  emphatically,  stating  it  in 
different  ways  no  less  than  three  times  in  this  short 
section  (vv.  4,  8,  16)  is  this, — that  widows  as  a  rule 
ought  to  be  supported  by  their  own  relations  ;  only  in 
exceptional  cases,  where  there  are  no  relations  who  can 
help,  ought  the  Church  to  have  to  undertake  this  duty. 
We  have  here  a  warning  against  the  mistake  so  often 
made  at  the  present  day  oi  freeing  people  from  their 
responsibilities  by  undertaking  for  them  in  mistaken 
charity  the  duties  which  they  ought  to  discharge,  and 
are  capable  of  discharging,  themselves. 

We  may,  therefore,  sum  up  the  principles  laid  down 
thus  : — 

Discretion  and  tact  are  needed  in  dealing  with  the 
different  sections  of  the  congregation,  and  especially  in 
relieving  the  widows.  Care  must  be  taken  not  to  en- 
courage either  a  rigour  not  likely  to  be  maintained,  or 
opportunities  of  idleness  certain  to  lead  to  mischief. 
Help  is  to  be  generously  afforded  to  the  destitute  ;  but 
the  resources  of  the  Church  must  be  jealously  guarded. 

hey  must  not  be  wasted  on  the  unworthy,  or  on  those 


v.3»4,9]  PASTOR'S  BEHAVIOUR  TOWARDS  WOMEN.    163 

who  have  other  means  of  help.  And,  so  far  as  possible, 
the  independence  of  those  who  are  relieved  must  be 
protected  by  employing  them  in  the  service  of  the 
Church. 

In  conclusion  it  may  be  worth  while  to  point  out  that 
this  mention  of  an  order  of  widows  is  no  argument 
against  the  Pauline  authorship  of  these  Epistles,  as  if  no 
such  thing  existed  in  his  time.  In  Acts  vi.  I  the  widows 
appear  as  a  distinct  body  in  the  Church  at  Jerusalem.  In 
Acts  ix.  39,  41,  they  appear  almost  as  an  order  \w  the 
Church  at  Joppa.  They  "  show  the  coats  and  gar- 
ments which  Dorcas  made"  in  a  way  which  seems 
to  imply  that  it  was  their  business  to  distribute  such 
things  among  the  needy.  Even  if  it  means  no  more 
than  that  Dorcas  made  them  for  the  relief  of  the 
widows  themselves,  still  the  step  from  a  body  of 
widows  set  apart  for  the  reception  of  alms  to  an  order 
of  widows  set  apart  for  the  duty  of  intercessory  prayer 
and  ministering  to  the  sick  is  not  a  long  one,  and  may 
easily  have  been  made  in  St.  Paul's  lifetime. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  PASTOR'S  RESPONSIBILITIES  IN  ORDAINING 
AND  JUDGING  PRESBYTERS. -THE  WORKS  THAT 
GO  BEFORE  AND   THAT  FOLLOW  US. 

"  Lay  hands  hastily  on  no  man,  neither  be  partaker  of  other  men's 
sins  :  keep  thyself  pure.  Be  no  longer  a  drinker  of  water,  but  use  a 
little  wine  for  thy  stomach's  sake  and  thine  often  infirmities.  Some 
men's  sins  are  evident,  going  before  unto  judgment ;  and  some  men  also 
they  follow  after.  In  like  manner  also  there  are  good  works  that  are 
evident ;  and  such  as  are  otherwise  cannot  be  hid  " — I  Tim.  v.  22 — 25. 

THE  section  of  which  these  verses  form  the  conclu- 
sion, hke  the  preceding  section  about  behaviour 
towards  the  different  classes  of  persons  in  the  con- 
gregation, supplies  us  with  evidence  that  we  are  dealing 
with  a  real  letter,  written  to  give  necessary  advice  to 
a  real  person,  and  not  a  theological  or  controversial 
treatise,  dressed  up  in  the  form  of  a  letter,  in  order  to 
obtain  the  authority  of  St.  Paul's  name  for  its  contents. 
Here,  as  before,  the  thoughts  follow  one  another  in  an 
order  which  is  quite  natural,  but  which  has  little  plan 
or  arrangement.  An  earnest  and  affectionate  friend, 
with  certain  points  in  his  mind  on  which  he  was 
anxious  to  say  something,  might  easily  treat  of  them  in 
this  informal  way  just  as  they  occurred  to  him,  one  thing 
suggesting  another.  But  a  forger,  bent  on  getting  his 
own  views  represented  in  the  document,  would  not 
string  them  together  in  this  loosely  connected  way :  he 
would  disclose  more  arrangement  than  we  can  find  here. 


V.  22-25.]      THE  PASTOR'S  RESPONSIBILITIES.  165 

What  forger  again,  would  think  of  inserting  that  advice 
about  ceasing  to  be  a  water-drinker  into  a  most  solemn 
charge  respecting  the  election  and  ordination  of  presby- 
ters ?  And  yet  how  thoroughly  natural  it  is  found  to 
be  in  this  very  context  when  considered  as  coming  from 
St.  Paul  to  Timothy  ! 

We  shall  go  seriously  astray  if  we  start  with  the 
conviction  that  the  word  "elder"  has  the  same  meaning 
throughout  this  chapter.  When  in  the  first  part  of  it 
St.  Paul  says  '^Rebuke  not  an  elder,  but  exhort  him 
as  a  father,"  it  is  quite  clear  that  he  is  speaking  simply 
of  elderly  men,  and  not  of  persons  holding  the  office  of 
an  elder :  for  he  goes  on  at  once  to  speak  of  the  treat- 
ment of  younger  men,  and  also  of  older  and  younger 
women.  But  when  in  the  second  half  of  the  chapter  he 
says  "Let  the  elders  that  rule  well  be  counted  worthy 
of  double  honour,"  and  "  Against  an  elder  receive  not 
an  accusation,  except  at  the  mouth  of  two  or  three 
witnesses,"  it  is  equally  clear  that  he  is  speaking  of 
official  persons,  and  not  merely  of  persons  who  are 
advanced  in  years.  The  way  in  which  the  thoughts 
suggested  one  another  throughout  this  portion  of  the 
letter  is  not  difficult  to  trace.  "  Let  no  man  despise 
thy  youth  "  suggested  advice  as  to  how  the  young  over- 
seer was  to  behave  towards  young  and  old  of  both 
sexes.  This  led  to  the  treatment  of  widows,  and  this 
again  to  the  manner  of  appointing  official  widows. 
Women  holding  an  official  position  suggests  the  subject 
of  men  holding  an  official  position  in  the  Church.  If 
the  treatment  of  the  one  class  needs  wisdom  and 
circumspection,  not  less  does  the  treatment  of  the 
other.  And  therefore,  with  even  more  solemnity  than 
in  the  previous  section  about  the  widows,  the  Apostle 
gives   his  directions   on    this   important   subject   also. 


i66  THE  FIRST  ^PISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

"  I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  Christ  Jesus, 
and  the  elect  angels,  that  thou  observe  these  things 
without  prejudice,  doing  nothing  by  partiality."  And 
then  he  passes  on  to  the  words  which  form  our  text. 

It  has  been  serio  usly  doubted  whether  the  words 
*'  Lay  hands  hastily  on  no  man  "  do  refer  to  the  ordina- 
tion of  the  official  elders  or  presbyters.  It  is  urged 
that  the  preceding  warnings  about  the  treatment  of 
charges  made  against  presbyters,  and  of  persons  who 
are  guilty  of  habitual  sin,  point  to  disciplinary  functions 
of  some  kind  rather  than  to  ordination.  Accordingly 
some  few  commentators  in  modern  times  have  treated 
the  passage  as  referring  to  the  laying  on  of  hands  at 
the  readmission  of  penitents  to  communion.  But  of  any 
such  custom  in  the  Apostolic  age  there  is  no  trace. 
There  is  nothing  improbable  in  the  hypothesis,  imposi- 
tion of  hands  being  a  common  symbolical  act.  But  it 
is  a  mere  hypothesis  unsupported  by  evidence.  Eusebius, 
in  speaking  of  the  controversy  between  Stephen  of 
Rome  and  Cyprian  of  Carthage  about  the  re-baptizing 
of  heretics,  tells  us  that  the  admission  of  heretics  to  the 
Church  by  imposition  of  hands  with  prayer,  but  without 
second  baptism,  was  the  ''old  custom."  But  the 
admission  of  heretics  is  not  quite  the  same  as  the  re- 
admission  of  penitents  :  and  a  custom  might  be  "  old  " 
(TraXaiov  rfio^)  in  the  time  of  Eusebius,  or  even  of 
Cyprian,  without  being  Apostolic  or  coeval  with  the 
Apostles..  Therefore  this  statement  of  Eusebius  gives 
little  support  to  the  proposed  interpretation  of  the 
passage ;  and  we  may  confidently  prefer  the  explanation 
of  it  which  has  prevailed  at  any  rate  since  Chrysostom's 
time,  that  it  refers  to  ordination.*     Of  the  laying  on  of 

*  TertuUian  (J)e  Bapt,  xviii.)  seems  to  understand  St.  Paul  to  be 


V.  22-25.]       THE  PASTOR'S  RESPONSIBILITIES.  167 

hands  at  the  appointment  of  ministers  we  have  sufficient 
evidence  in  the  New  Testament,  not  only  in  these 
Epistles  (l  Tim.  iv.  14;  2  Tim.  i.  6),  but  in  the  Acts 
(xiii.  3).  Moreover  this  explanation  fits  thq  context  at 
least  as  wxll  as  the  supposed  improvement. 

1.  The  Apostle  is  speaking  of  the  treatment  of  pres- 
byters, not  of  the  whole  congregation.  Imposition  of 
hands  at  the  admission  of  a  heretic  or  re- admission 
of  a  penitent  would  apply  to  any  person,  and  not  to 
presbyters  in  particular.  Therefore  it  is  more  reason- 
able to  assume  that  the  laying  on  of  hands  which 
accompanied  ordination  is  meant. 

2.  He  has  just  been  warning  Timothy  against  pre- 
judice or  partiality  in  dealing  with  the  elders.  While 
prejudice  might  lead  him  to  be  hasty  in  condemning  an 
accused  presbyter,  before  he  had  satisfied  himself  that 
the  evidence  was  adequate,  partiality  might  lead  him 
to  be  hasty  in  acquitting  him.  But  there  is  a  more 
serious  partiality  than  this,  and  it  is  one  of  the  main 
causes  of  such  scandals  as  unworthy  presbyters.  There 
is  the  partiality  which  leads  to  a  hasty  ordination, 
before  sufficient  care  has  been  taken  to  ensure  that  the 
qualifications  so  carefully  laid  down  in  chapter  iii.  are 
present  in  the  person  selected.  Prevention  is  better 
than  cure.  Proper  precautions  taken  beforehand  will 
reduce  the  risk  of  true  charges  against  an  elder  to  a 
minimum.  Here  again  the  traditional  explanation  fits 
the  context  admirably. 

"  Neither  be  partaker  of  other  men's  sins."  It  is 
usual  to  understand  this  warning  as  referring  to  the 
responsibility  of  those  who  ordain.     If,   through  haste 


speaking  of  the  imposition  of  hands  after  Baptism  (Acts  viii.  17,  xix.  6), 
which  can  hardly  be  correct. 


l68  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

or  carelessness  you  ordain  an  unfit  person,  you  must 
share  the  guilt  of  the  sins  which  he  afterwards  commits 
as  an  elder.  The  principle  is  a  just  one,  but  it  may 
be  doubted  whether  this  is  St.  Paul's  meaning.  The 
particular  form  of  negative  used  seems  to  be  against 
it.  He  says  "  Nor  yet  (^rjSi)  be  partaker  of  other 
men's  sins,"  implying  that  this  is  something  different 
from  hastiness  in  ordinary.  He  seems  to  be  returning 
to  the  warnings  about  partiality  to  elders  who  are 
living  in  sin.  The  meaning,  therefore,  is — "  Beware 
of  a  haste  in  ordaining  which  may  lead  to  the  admission 
of  unworthy  men  to  the  ministry.  And  if,  in  spite 
of  all  your  care,  unworthy  ministers  come  under  your 
notice,  beware  of  an  indifference  or  partiality  towards 
them  which  will  make  you  a  partaker  in  their  sins." 
This  interpretation  fits  on  well  to  what  follows.  "  Keep 
thyself  pure  " — with  a  strong  emphasis  on  the  pronoun. 
"  Strictness  in  enquiring  into  the  antecedents  of  can- 
didates for  ordination  and  in  dealing  with  ministerial 
depravity  will  have  a  very  poor  effect,  unless  your  own 
life  is  free  from  reproach."  And,  if  we  omit  the  paren- 
thetical advice  about  taking  wine,  the  thought  is  con- 
tinued thus:  "As  a  rule  it  is  not  difficult  to  arrive  at 
a  wise  decision  respecting  the  fitness  of  candidates,  or 
the  guilt  of  accused  presbyters.  Men's  characters  both 
for  evil  and  good  are  commonly  notorious.  The  vices 
of  the  wicked  and  the  virtues  of  the  good  outrun  any 
formal  judgment  about  them,  and  are  quite  manifest 
before  an  enquiry  is  held.  No  doubt  there  are  excep- 
tions, and  then  the  consequences  of  men's  lives  must 
be  looked  to  before  a  just  opinion  can  be  formed.  But, 
sooner  or  later  (and  generally  sooner  rather  than  later) 
men,  and  especially  ministers,  will  be  known  for  what 
they  are," 


V.  22-25.]       THE  PASTOR'S  RESPONSIBILITIES.  169 

It  remains  to  ascertain  the  meaning  of  the  curious 
parenthesis  "  Be  no  longer  a  drinker  of  water/'  and  its 
connexion  with  the  rest  of  the  passage. 

It  was  probably  suggested  to  St.  Paul  by  the  pre- 
ceding words,  "  Beware  of  making  yourself  responsible 
for  the  sins  of  others.  Keep  your  own  life  above 
suspicion."  This  charge  reminds  the  Apostle  that 
his  beloved  disciple  has  been  using  ill-advised  means 
to  do  this  very  thing.  Either  in  or<ler  to  mark  his 
abhorrence  of  the  drunkenness,  which  was  one  of  the 
most  conspicuous  vices  of  the  age,  or  in  order  to  bring 
his  own  body  more  easily  into  subjection,  Timothy 
had  abandoned  the  use  of  wine  altogether,  in  spite  of 
his  weak  health.  St.  Paul,  therefore,  with  characteristic 
affection,  takes  care  that  his  charge  is  not  misunder- 
stood. In  urging  his  representative  to  be  strictly 
careful  of  his  own  conduct,  he  does  not  wish  to  be 
understood  as  encouraging  him  to  give  up  whatever 
might  be  abused  or  made  the  basis  of  a  slander,  nor 
yet  as  approving  his  rigour  in  giving  up  the  use  of 
wine.  On  the  contrary,  he  thinks  it  a  mistake ;  and 
he  takes  this  opportunity  of  telling  him  so,  while  it 
is  in  his  mind.  Christ's  ministers  have  important 
duties  to  perform,  and  have  no  right  to  play  tricks 
with  their  health.  We  may  here  repeat,  with  renewed 
confidence,  that  a  touch  of  this  kind  would  never  have 
occurred  to  a  forger.  Hence,  in  order  to  account  for 
such  natural  touches  as  these,  those  who  maintain  that 
these  Epistles  are  a  fabrication  now  resort  to  the 
hypothesis  that  the  forger  had  some  genuine  letters 
of  St.  Paul  and  worked  parts  of  them  into  his  own 
productions.  It  seems  to  be  far  more  reasonable  to 
believe  that  St.  Paul  wrote  the  whole  of  them.  (See 
above,  pp.  8  and  9,  and  below,  pp.  407,  ff.). 


170  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

Let  us  return  to  the  statement  with  which  the 
Apostle  closes  this  section  of  his  letter.  "  Some  men's 
sins  are  evident,  going  before  unto  judgment ;  and 
some  men  also  they  follow  after.  In  like  manner  also 
there  are  good  works  that  are  evident;  and  such  as 
are  otherwise  cannot  be  hid." 

We  have  seen  already  what  relation  these  words 
have  to  the  context.  They  refer  to  the  discernment 
between  good  and  bad  candidates  for  the  ministry, 
and  between  good  and  bad  ministers,  pointing  out  that 
in  most  cases  such  discernment  is  not  difficult,  because 
men's  own  conduct  acts  as  a  herald  to  their  character, 
proclaiming  it  to  all  the  world.  The  statement,  though 
made  with  special  reference  to  Timothy's  responsibilities 
towards  elders  and  those  who  wish  to  become  such, 
is  a  general  one,  and  is  equally  true  of  all  mankind. 
Conduct  in  most  cases  is  quite  a  clear  index  of 
character,  and  there  is  no  need  to  have  a  formal 
investigation  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  a  man  is 
leading  a  wicked  life  or  not.  But  the  words  have  a 
still  deeper  significance — one  which  is  quite  foreign 
to  the  context,  and  therefore  can  hardly  have  been  in 
St.  Paul's  mind  when  he  wrote  them,  but  which  as 
being  true  and  of  importance,  ought  not  to  be  passed 
over. 

For  a  formal  investigation  into  men's  conduct  before 
an  ecclesiastical  or  other  official,  let  us  substitute  the 
judgment-seat  of  Christ.  Let  the  question  be,  not  the 
worthiness  of  certain  persons  to  be  admitted  to  some 
office,  but  their  worthiness  to  be  admitted  to  eternal 
life.  The  general  statement  made  by  the  Apostle 
remains  as  true  as  ever.  There  are  some  men  who 
stand,  as  before  God,  so  also  before  the  world,  as  open, 
self-proclaimed  sinners.     Wherever  they  go,  their  sins 


v.i2-25.]      THE  PASTOR'S  RESPONSIBILITIES.  171 

go  before  them,  flagrant,  crying,  notorious.  And  when 
they  are  summoned  hence,  their  sins  again  precede 
them,  waiting  for  them  as  accusers  and  witnesses 
before  the  Judge.  The  whole  career  of  an  open  and 
deliberate  sinner  is  the  procession  of  a  criminal  to  his 
doom.*  His  sins  go  before,  and  their  consequences 
follow  after,  and  he  moves  on  in  the  midst,  careless 
of  the  one  and  ignorant  of  the  other.  He  has  laughed 
at  his  sins  and  chased  remorse  for  them  away.  He 
has  by  turns  cherished  and  driven  out  the  remembrance 
of  them  ;  dwelt  on  them,  when  to  think  of  them  was 
a  pleasant  repetition  of  them  ;  stifled  the  thought  of 
them,  when  to  think  of  them  might  have  brought 
thoughts  of  penitence ;  and  has  behaved  towards  them 
as  if  he  could  not  only  bring  them  into  being  without 
guilt,  but  control  them  or  annihilate  them  without 
difficulty.  He  has  not  controlled,  he  has  not  destroyed, 
he  has  not  even  evaded,  one  of  them.  Each  of  them, 
when  brought  into  existence,  became  his  master,  going 
on  before  him  to  herald  his  guiltiness,  and  saddling 
him  with  consequences  from  which  he  could  not  escape. 
And  when  he  went  to  his  own  place,  it  was  his  sins 
that  had  gone  before  him  and  prepared  the  place  for 
him. 

*'And  some  men  also  they  follow  after."  There  are 
cases  in  which  men's  sins,  though  of  course  not  less 
manifest  to  the  Almighty,  are  much  less  manifest  to 
the  world,  and  even  to  themselves,  than  in  the  case  of 
flagrant,  open  sinners.  The  consequences  of  their  sins 
are  less  conspicuous,  less  easily  disentangled  from  the 
mass  of  unexplained  misery  of  which  the  world  is  so 
full.     Cause  and  effect  cannot  be  put  together  with  any 

•  Manning's  Sermons,  vol.  iii.,  p.  74,  Burns,  1847, 


t72  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

precision ;  for  sometimes  the  one,  sometimes  the  other, 
sometimes  even  both,  are  out  of  sight.  There  is  no 
anticipation  of  the  final  award  to  be  given  at  the  judg- 
ment-seat of  Christ.  Not  until  the  guilty  one  is  placed 
before  the  throne  for  trial,  is  it  at  all  known  whether 
the  sentence  will  be  unfavourable  or  not.  Even  the 
man  himself  has  lived  and  died  without  being  at  all 
fully  aware  what  the  state  of  the  case  is.  He  has  not 
habitually  examined  himself,  to  see  w^hether  he  has 
been  living  in  sin  or  not.  He  has  taken  no  pains  to 
remember,  and  repent  of,  and  conquer,  those  sins  of 
which  he  has  been  conscious.  The  consequences  of  his 
sins  have  seldom  come  so  swiftly  as  to  startle  him  and 
convince  him  of  their  enormity.  When  they  have  at 
last  overtaken  him,  it  has  been  possible  to  doubt  or  to 
forget  that  it  was  his  sins  which  caused  them.  And 
consequently  he  has  doubted,  and  he  has  forgotten. 
But  for  all  that,  "  they  follow  after."  They  are  never 
eluded,  never  shaken  off.  A  cause  must  have  its  effect ; 
and  a  sin  must  have  its  punishment,  if  not  in  this 
world,  then  certainly  in  the  next.  "  Be  sure  your  sin 
will  find  you  out " — probably  in  this  life,  but  at  any 
rate  at  the  day  of  judgment.  As  surely  as  death 
follows  on  a  pierced  heart  or  on  a  severed  neck,  so 
surely  does  punishment  follow  upon  sin. 

How  is  it  that  in  the  material  world  we  never  dreami 
that  cause  and  effect  can  be  separated,  and  yet  easily 
believe  that  in  the  moral  world  sin  may  remain  for  ever 
unpunished  ?  Our  relation  to  the  material  universe  has 
been  compared  to  a  game  of  chess.  "  The  chess-board 
is  the  world,  the  pieces  are  the  phenomena  of  the 
universe,  the  rules  of  the  game  are  what  we  call  the 
laws  of  nature.  The  player  on  the  other  side  is  hidden 
from  us.     We  know  that  his  play  is  always  fair,  just, 


V.  22-25.]      THE  PASTORS  RESPONSIBILITIES.  173 

and  patient.  But  also  we  know,  to  our  cost,  that  he 
never  overlooks  a  mistake,  or  makes  the  smallest  allow- 
ance for  ignorance.  To  the  man  who  plays  well,  the 
highest  stakes  are  paid,  with  that  sort  of  over-flowing 
generosity  with  which  the  strong  shows  delight  in 
strength.  And  one  who  plays  ill  is  checkmated — 
without  haste,  but  without  remorse."*  We  believe  this 
implicitly  of  the  material  laws  of  the  universe  ;  that 
they  cannot  be  evaded,  cannot  be  transgressed  with 
impunity,  cannot  be  obeyed  without  profit.  Moral  laws 
are  not  one  whit  less  sure.  Whether  we  believe  it  or 
not  (and  it  will  but  be  the  worse  for  us  if  we  refuse  to 
believe  it),  sin,  both  repented  and  unrepented,  must 
have  its  penalty.  We  might  as  well  fling  a  stone,  or 
shoot  a  cannon-ball,  or  send  a  balloon  into  the  air,  and 
say  *^  You  shall  not  come  down  again,"  as  sin,  and  say 
*^  I  shaU  never  suffer  for  it."  Repentance  does  not 
deprive  sin  of  its  natural  effect.  We  greatly  err  in 
supposing  that,  if  we  repent  in  time,  we  escape  the 
penalty.  To  refuse  to  repent  is  a  second  and  a  worse 
sin,  which,  added  to  the  first  sin,  increases  the  penalty 
incalculably.  To  repent  is  to  escape  this  terrible 
augmentation  of  the  original  punishment ;  but  it  is  no 
escape  from  the  punishment  itself. 

But  there  is  a  bright  side  to  this  inexorable  law. 
If  sin  must  have  its  own  punishment,  virtue  must  have 
its  own  reward.  The  one  is  as  sure  as  the  other ;  and 
in  the  long  run  the  fact  of  virtue  and  the  reward  of 
virtue  will  be  made  clear  to  all  the  world,  and  especially 
to  the  virtuous  man  himself.  ^'  The  works  that  are 
good  are  evident ;  and  such  as  are  not  evident  cannot 
be  hid."     No  saint  knows  his  own  holiness ;  and  many 

*  Huxley's  Lay  Sermons,  Essay  I.     Macmillan. 


174  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

a  humble  seeker  after  holiness  does  good  deeds  without 
knowing  how  good  they  are.  Still  less  are  all  saints 
known  as  such  to  the  world,  or  all  good  deeds  recog- 
nized as  good  by  those  who  witness  them.  But,  never- 
theless, good  works  as  a  rule  are  evident,  and,  if  they 
are  not  so,  they  will  become  so  hereafter.  If  not  in 
this  world,  at  any  rate  before  Christ's  judgment-seat. 
They  will  be  appraised  at  their  true  value.  It  is  as 
true  of  the  righteous  as  of  the  wicked,  that  *^  their 
works  do  follow  them."  And,  if  there  is  no  more 
terrible  fate  than  to  be  confronted  at  the  last  day  by  a 
multitude  of  unknown  and  forgotten  sins,  so  there  can 
hardly  be  any  lot  more  blessed  than  to  be  welcomed 
then  by  a  multitude  of  unknown  and  forgotten  deeds  of 
love  and  piety.  "  Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  unto  one  of 
these  My  brethren,  even  these  least,  ye  did  it  unto  Me." 
"  Come,  ye  blessed  of  My  Father,  inherit  the  kingdom 
prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  NATURE  OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY  AND  THE 
APOSTLE'S  ATTITUDE  TOWARDS  IT— A  MODERN 
PARALLEL. 

"  Let  as  many  as  are  bond -servants  under  the  yoke  count  their  own 
masters  worthy  of  all  honour,  that  the  name  of  God  and  the  doctrine 
be  not  blasphemed.  And  they  that  have  believing  masters,  let  them 
not  despise  them,  because  they  are  brethren ;  but  let  them  serve  them 
the  rather,  because  they  that  partake  of  the  benefit  are  believing  and 
beloved.     These  things  teach  and  exhort." — I  Tim.  vi.  I,  2. 

THERE  are  four  passages  in  which  St.  Paul  deals 
directly  with  the  relations  between  slaves  and 
their  masters  : — in  the  Epistles  to  the  Ephesians 
(vi.  5 — 9),  to  the  Colossians  (iii.  22 — iv.  i),  to  Philemon 
(8 — 21),  and  the  passage  before  us.  Here  he  looks  at  the 
question  from  the  slave's  point  of  view  ;  in  the  letter  to 
Philemon  from  that  of  the  master :  in  the  Epistles  to 
the  Colossians  and  to  the  Ephesians  he  addresses  both. 
In  all  four  places  his  attitude  towards  this  monster 
abomination  is  one  and  the  same  ;  and  it  is  a  very 
remarkable  one.  He  nowhere  denounces  slavery.  He 
does  not  state  that  such  an  intolerable  iniquity  as  man 
possessing  his  fellow-man  must  be  done  away  as 
speedily  as  may  be.  He  gives  no  encouragement  to 
slaves  to  rebel  or  to  run  away.  He  gives  no  hint  to 
masters  that  they  ought  to  let  their  slaves  go  free. 
Nothing  of  the  kind.  He  not  only  accepts  slavery  as  a 
fact;   he  seems  to  treat  it  as  a  necessary  fact,  a  fact 


fj6  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

likely  to  be  as  permanent  as  marriage  and  parentage, 
poverty  and  wealth. 

This  attitude  becomes  all  the  more  marvellous,  when 
we  remember,  not  only  what  slavery  necessarily  is 
wherever  it .  exists,  but  what  slavery  was  both  by 
custom  and  by  law  among  the  great  slave-owners 
throughout  the  Roman  Empire.  Slavery  is  at  all  times 
degrading  to  both  the  parties  in  that  unnatural  relation- 
ship, however  excellent  may  be  the  regulations  by  which 
it  is  protected,  and  however  noble  may  be  the  characters 
of  both  master  and  slave.  It  is  impossible  for  one 
hum^an  being  to  be  absolute  owner  of  another's  person 
without  both  possessor  and  possessed  being  morally 
the  worse  for  it.  Violations  of  nature's  laws  are  never 
perpetrated  with  impunity ;  and  when  the  laws  violated 
are  those  which  are  concerned,  not  with  unconscious 
forces  and  atoms,  but  with  human  souls  and  characters, 
the  penalties  of  the  violation  are  none  the  less  sure 
or  severe.  But  these  evils,  which  are  the  inevitable 
consequences  of  the  existence  of  slavery  in  any  shape 
whatever,  may  be  increased  a  hundredfold,  if  the 
slavery  exists  under  no  regulations,  or  under  bad 
regulations,  or  again  where  both  master  and  slave  are, 
to  start  with,  base  and  brutalized  in  character.  And 
all  this  was  the  case  in  the  early  days  of  the  Roman 
Empire.  Slavery  was  to  a  great  extent  under  no  check 
at  all,  and  the  laws  which  did  exist  for  regulating  the 
relationship  between  owner  and  slave  were  for  the 
most  part  of  a  character  to  intensify  the  evil ;  while  the 
conditions  under  which  both  master  and  slave  were 
educated  were  such  as  to  render  each  of  them  ready  to 
increase  the  moral  degradation  of  the  other.  We  are 
accustomed  to  regard  with  well-merited  abhorrence  and 
abomination  the  horrors  of  modern  slavery  as  practised 


Vi.  i,  2.]      THE  NATURE   OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY.  177 

until  recently  in  America,  and  as  still  practised  in 
Egypt,  Persia,  Turkey,  and  Arabia.  But  it  may  be 
doubted  whether  all  the  horrors  of  modern  slavery 
are  to  be  compared  with  the  horrors  of  the  slavery  of 
ancient  Rome. 

From  a  political  point  of  view  it  may  be  admitted 
that  the  institution  of  slavery  has  in  past  ages  played 
a  useful  part  in  the  history  of  mankind.  It  has  miti- 
gated the  cruelties  of  barbaric  warfare.  It  was  more 
merciful  to  enslave  a  prisoner  than  to  sacrifice  him  to 
the  gods,  or  to  torture  him  to  death,  or  to  eat  him. 
And  the  enslaved  prisoner  and  the  warrior  who  had 
captured  him,  at  once  became  mutually  useful  to  one 
another.  The  warrior  protected  his  slave  from  attack, 
and  the  slave  by  his  labour  left  the  warrior  free  to 
protect  him.  Thus  each  did  something  for  the  benefit 
of  the  other  and  of  the  society  in  which  they  lived. 

But  when  we  look  at  the  institution  from  a  moral 
point  of  view,  it  is  difficult  to  avoid  the  conclusion  that 
its  effects  have  been  wholly  evil,  (i)  It  has  been  fatal 
to  one  of  the  most  wholesome  of  human  beliefs,  the 
belief  in  the  dignity  of  labour.  Labour  was  irksome, 
and  therefore  assigned  to  the  slave,  and  consequently 
came  to  be  regarded  as  degrading.  Thus  the  freeman 
lost  the  ennobling  discipline  of  toil ;  and  to  the  slave 
toil  was  not  ennobling,  because  every  one  treated  it  as 
a  degradation.  (2)  It  has  been  disastrous  to  the 
personal  character  of  the  master.  The  possession  of 
absolute  power  is  always  dangerous  to  our  nature. 
Greek  writers  are  never  tired  of  insisting  upon  this  in 
connexion  with  the  rule  of  despots  over  citizens. 
Strangely  enough  they  did  not  see  that  the  principle 
remained  the  same  whether  the  autocrat  was  ruler  of 
a  state  or  of  a  household.     In  either  case  he  almost 

12 


178  The  first  epistle  to  timothy. 

inevitably  became  a  tyrant,  incapable  of  self-control; 
and  the  constant  victim  of  flattery.  And  in  some  ways 
the  domestic  tyrant  was  the  worse  of  the  two.  There 
was  no  public  opinion  to  keep  him  in  check,  and  his 
tyranny  could  exercise  itself  in  every  detail  of  daily  life. 
(3)  It  has  been  disastrous  to  the  personal  character  of 
the  slave.  Accustomed  to  be  looked  upon  as  an  inferior 
and  scarcely  human  being,  always  at  the  beck  and  call 
of  another,  and  that  for  the  most  menial  services,  the 
slave  lost  all  self-respect.  His  natural  weapon  was 
deceit ;  and  his  chief,  if  not  his  only  pleasure,  was  the 
gratification  of  his  lowest  appetites.  The  household 
slave  not  unfrequently  divided  his  time  between 
pandering  to  his  master's  passions  and  gratifying  his 
own.  (4)  It  has  beeii  ruinous  to  family  life.  If  it 
did  not  trouble  the  relation  between  husband  and  wife, 
it  poisoned  the  atmosphere  in  which  they  lived  and 
in  which  their  children  were  reared.  The  younger 
generation  inevitably  suffered.  Even  if  they  did  not 
learn  cruelty  from  their  parents,  and  deceit  and 
sensuality  from  the  slaves,  they  lost  delicacy  of  feeling 
by  seeing  human  beings  treated  like  brute  beasts,  and 
by  being  constantly  in  the  society  of  those  whom  they 
were  taught  to  despise.  Even  Plato,  in  recommending 
that  slaves  should  be  treated  justly  and  with  a  view  to 
their  moral  improvement,  says  that  they  must  always 
be  punished  for  their  faults,  and  not  reproved  like 
freemen,  which  only  makes  them  conceited  ;  and  one 
should  use  no  language  to  them  but  that  of  command.* 
These  evils,  which  are  inherent  in  the  very  nature 
of  slavery,  were  intensified  a  hundredfold  by  Roman 
legislation,  and   by  the  condition  of  Roman  society  in 

*  Laws^  777  D. 


vi.  I,  2.]      THE  NATURE   OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY.  179 

the  first  century  of  the  Christian  era.  Slavery,  which 
began  by  being  a  mitigation  of  the  barbarities  of 
warfare,  ended  in  becoming  an  augmentation  of  them. 
Although  a  single  campaign  would  sometimes  bring  in 
many  thousands  of  captives  who  were  sold  into  slavery, 
yet  war  did  not  procure  slaves  fast  enough  for  the 
demand,  and  was  supplemented  by  systematic  man- 
hunts. It  has  been  estimated  that  in  the  Roman  world 
of  St.  Paul's  day  the  proportion  of  slaves  to  freemen 
was  in  the  ratio  of  two,  or  even  three,  to  one.  It  was 
the  immense  number  of  the  slaves  which  led  to  some 
of  the  cruel  customs  and  laws  respecting  them.  In 
the  country  they  often  worked,  and  sometimes  slept, 
in  chains.  Even  in  Rome  under  Augustus  the  house- 
porter  was  sometimes  chained.  And  by  a  decree  of  the 
Senate,  if  the  master  was  murdered  by  a  slave,  all  the 
slaves  of  the  household  were  put  to  death.  The  four 
hundred  slaves  of  Pedanius  Secundus  were  executed 
under  this  enactment  in  a.d.  61,  in  which  year  St.  Paul 
was  probably  in  Rome.  Pubhc  protest  was  made ;  but 
the  Senate  decided  that  the  law  must  take  its  course. 
The  rabble  of  slaves  could  only  be  kept  in  check  by 
fear.  Again,  if  the  master  was  accused  of  a  crime,  he 
could  surrender  his  slaves  to  be  tortured  in  order  to 
prove  his  innocence.* 

But  it  would  be  a  vile  task  to  rehearse  all  the  horrors 
and  abominations  to  which  the  cruelty  and  lust  of 
wealthy  Roman  men  and  women  subjected  their  slaves. 
The  bloody  sports  of  the  gladiatorial  shows  and  the 
indecent  products  of  the  Roman  stage  were  partly  the 
effect  and  partly  the  cause  of  the  frightful  character  of 
Roman  slavery.     The  gladiators  and  the  actors  were 

*  Tacitus,  Ann.  xiv.  42 — 45 ;  iii.  14;  comp.  ii.  30  and  iii.  67, 


i8o  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

slaves  especially  trained  for  these  debasing  exhibi- 
tions; and  Roman  nobles  and  Roman  ladies,  brutalized 
and  polluted  by  witnessing  them,  went  home  to  give 
vent  among  the  slaves  of  their  own  households  to 
the  passions  which  the  circus  and  the  theatre  had 
roused. 

And  this  was  the  system  which  St.  Paul  left  un- 
attacked  and  undenounced.  He  never  in  so  many 
words  expresses  any  authoritative  condemnation  or 
personal  abhorrence  of  it.  This  is  all  the  more  re- 
markable when  we  remember  St.  Paul's  enthusiastic 
and  sympathetic  temperament ;  and  the  fact  is  one 
more  proof  of  the  Divine  inspiration  of  Scripture. 
That  slavery,  as  he  saw  it,  must  often  have  excited  the 
most  intense  indignation  and  distress  in  his  heart  we 
cannot  doubt ;  and  yet  he  was  guided  not  to  give  his 
sanction  to  remedies  which  would  certainly  have  been 
violent  and  possibly  ineffectual.  To  have  preached 
that  the  Christian  master  must  let  his  slaves  go  free, 
would  have  been  to  preach  that  slaves  had  a  right  to 
freedom ;  and  the  slave  would  understand  that  to  mean 
that,  if  freedom  was  not  granted,  he  might  take  this 
right  of  his  by  force.  Of  all  wars,  a  servile  war  is 
perhaps  the  most  frightful ;  and  we  may  be  thankful 
that  none  of  those  who  first  preached  the  Gospel,  gave 
their  sanction  to  any  such  movement.  The  sudden 
abolition  of  slavery  in  the  first  century  would  have 
meant  the  shipwreck  of  society.  Neither  master  nor 
slave  was  fit  for  any  such  change.  A  long  course  of 
education  was  needed  before  so  radical  a  reform  could 
be  successfully  accomplished.  It  has  been  pointed  out 
as  one  of  the  chief  marks  of  the  Divine  character  of  the 
Gospel,  that  it  never  appeals  to  the  spirit  of  political 
revolution.     It  does  not  denounce  abuses ;  but  it  insists 


vi.  1,2.]      THE  NATURE   OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY.  i8i 


upon    principles  which  will    necessarily  lead    to   their 
abolition. 

This  was  precisely  what  St.  Paul  did  in  dealing 
with  the  gigantic  cancer  which  was  draining  the  forces, 
economical,  political,  and  moral,  of  Roman  society. 
He  did  not  tell  the  slave  that  he  was  oppressed  and 
outraged.  He  did  not  tell  the  master  that  to  buy  and 
sell  human  beings  was  a  violation  of  the  rights  of  man. 
But  he  inspired  both  of  them  with  sentiments  which 
rendered  the  permanence  of  the  unrighteous  relation 
between  them  impossible.  To  many  a  Roman  it  would 
have  seemed  nothing  less  than  robbery  and  revolution 
to  tell  him  "  You  have  no  right  to  own  these  persons  ; 
you  must  free  your  slaves."  St.  Paul,  without  attacking 
the  rights  of  property  or  existing  laws  and  customs, 
spoke  a  far  higher  word,  and  one  which  sooner  or  later 
must  carry  the  freedom  with  it,  when  he  said,  "  You 
must  love  your  slaves."  All  the  moral  abominations 
which  had  clustered  round  slavery, — idleness,  deceit, 
cruelty,  and  lust, — he  denounced  unsparingly  ;  but  for 
their  own  sake,  not  because  of  their  connexion  with 
this  iniquitous  institution.  The  social  arrangements, 
which  allowed  and  encouraged  slavery,  he  did  not 
denounce.  He  left  it  to  the  principles  which  he  preached 
gradually  to  reform  them.  Slavery  cannot  continue 
when  the  brotherhood  of  all  mankind,  and  the  equality 
of  all  men  in  Christ,  have  been  realized.  And  long 
before  slavery  is  abolished,  it  is  made  more  humane, 
wherever  Christian  principles  are  brought  to  bear  upon 
it.  Even  before  Christianity  in  the  person  of  Constan- 
tine  ascended  the  imperial  throne,  it  had  influenced 
public  opinion  in  the  right  direction.  Seneca  and 
Plutarch  are  much  more  humane  in  their  views  of 
slavery  than  earlier  writers  are  \  and  under  the  Antg- 


[82  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 


nines  the  power  of  life  and  death  over  slaves  was 
transferred  from  their  masters  to  the  magistrates. 
Constantine  went  much  further,  and  Justinian  further 
still,  in  ameliorating  the  condition  of  slaves  and  en- 
couraging emancipation.  Thus  slowly,  but  surely,  this 
monstrous  evil  is  being  eradicated  from  society  ;  and 
it  is  one  of  the  many  beauties  of  the  Gospel  in  com- 
parison with  Islam,  that  whereas  Mahometanism  has 
consecrated  slavery  and  given  it  a  permanent  religious 
sanction,  Christianity  has  steadfastly  abolished  it.  It 
is  among  the  chief  glories  of  the  present  century  that 
it  has  seen  the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the  British 
empire,  the  emancipation  of  the  serfs  in  Russia,  and 
the  emancipation  of  the  negroes  in  the  United  States. 
And  we  may  safely  assert  that  these  tardy  removals  of 
a  great  social  evil  would  never  have  been  accomplished 
but  for  the  principles  which  St.  Paul  preached,  at  the 
very  time  that  he  was  allowing  Christian  masters  to 
retain  their  slaves,  and  bidding  Christian  slaves  to 
honour  and  obey  their  heathen  masters. 

The  Apostle's  injunctions  to  slaves  who  have  Chris- 
tian masters  is  worthy  of  special  attention  :  it  indicates 
one  of  the  evils  which  would  certainly  have  become 
serious,  had  the  Apostles  set  to  work  to  preach  emanci- 
pation. The  slaves  being  in  almost  all  cases  quite 
unfitted  for  a  life  of  freed :)m,  wholesale  emancipation 
would  have  flooded  society  with  crowds  of  persons 
quite  unable  to  make  a  decent  use  of  their  newly 
acquired  liberty.  The  sudden  change  in  their  condition 
would  have  been  too  great  for  their  self-control.  In- 
deed we  gather  from  what  St.  Paul  says  here,  that  the 
acceptance  of  the  principles  of  Christianity  in  some 
cases  threw  them  off  their  balance.  He  charges  Chris- 
tian slaves  who  have  Christian  masters  not  to  despise 


vi.  1,2.]      THE  NATURE   OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY.  183 

them.  Evidently  this  was  a  temptation  which  he  fore- 
saw, even  if  it  was  not  a  fault  which  he  had  sometimes 
observed.  To  be  told  that  he  and  his  master  were 
brethren,  and  to  fijid  that  his  master  accepted  this  view 
of  their  relationships  was  more  than  the  poor  slave  in 
some  instances  could  bear.  He  had  been  educated  to 
believe  that  he  was  an  inferior  order  of  being,  having 
scarcely  anything  in  common,  excepting  a  human  form 
and  passions,  with  his  master.  And,  whether  he 
accepted  this  belief  or  not,  he  had  found  himself  syste- 
matically treated  as  if  it  were  indisputable.  When, 
therefore,  he  was  assured,  as  one  of  the  first  principles 
of  his  new  faith,  that  he  was  not  only  human,  like  his 
master,  but  in  God's  family  was  his  master's  equal  and 
brother;  above  all,  when  he  had  a  Christian  master 
who  not  only  shared  this  new  faith,  but  acted  upon  it 
and  treated  him  as  a  brother,  then  his  head  was  in 
danger  of  being  turned.  The  rebound  from  grovelling 
fear  to  terms  of  equality  and  affection  was  too  much 
for  him  ;  and  the  old  attitude  of  cringing  terror  was 
exchanged  not  for  respectful  loyalty,  but  for  contempt. 
He  began  to  despise  the  master  who  had  ceased  to 
make  himself  terrible.  All  this  shows  how  dangerous 
sudden  changes  of  social  relationships  are;  and  how 
warily  we  need  to  go  to  work  in  order  to  bring  about 
a  reform  of  those  which  most  plainly  need  readjustment ; 
and  it  adds  greatly  to  our  admiration  of  the  wisdom  of 
the  Apostle  and  our  gratitude  to  Him  Who  inspired  him 
with  such  wisdom,  to  see  that  in  dealing  with  this 
difficult  problem  he  does  not  allow  his  sympathies  to 
outrun  his  judgment,  and  does  not  attempt  to  cure  a 
long-standing  evil,  which  had  entwined  its  roots  round 
the  very  foundations  of  society,  by  any  rapid  or  violent 
process.     All  men  are  by  natural  right  free.     Granted, 


tU  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

All  men  are  by  creation  children  of  God,  and  by  re- 
demption brethren  in  Christ.  Granted.  But  it  is 
worse  than  useless  to  give  freedom  suddenly  to  those 
who  from  their  birth  have  been  deprived  of  it,  and  do 
not  yet  know  what  use  to  make  of  it ;  and  to  give  the 
position  of  children  and  brethren  all  at  once  to  outcasts 
who  cannot  understand  what  such  privileges  mean. 

St.  Paul  tells  the  slave  that  freedom  is  a  thing  to 
be  desired ;  but  still  more  that  it  is  a  thing  to  be 
deserved.  "  While  you  are  still  under  the  yoke  prove 
yourselves  worthy  of  it  and  capable  of  bearing  it. 
In  becoming  Christians  you  have  become  Christ's 
freeman.  Show  that  you  can  enjoy  that  liberty  with- 
out abusing  it.  If  it  leads  you  to  treat  a  heathen 
master  with  disdain,  because  he  has  it  not,  then  you 
give  him  an  opportunity  of  blaspheming  God  and 
your  holy  religion ;  for  he  can  say,  '  What  a  vile  creed 
this  must  be,  which  makes  servants  haughty  and  dis- 
respectful !  *  If  it  leads  you  to  treat  a  Christian 
master  with  contemptuous  familiarity,  because  he 
recognizes  you  as  a  brother  whom  he  must  love, 
then  you  are  turning  upside  down  the  obligation  which 
a  common  faith  imposes  on  you.  That  he  is  a  fellow- 
Christian  is  a  reason  why  you  should  treat  him  with 
more  reverence,  not  less."  This  is  ever  the  burden 
of  his  exhortation  to  slaves.  He  bids  Timothy  to 
insist  upon  it.  He  tells  Titus  to  do  the  same 
(ii.  9,  lo).  Slaves  were  in  special  danger  of  mis- 
understanding what  the  liberty  of  the  Gospel  meant. 
It  is  not  for  a  moment  to  be  supposed  that  it  cancels 
any  existing  obligations  of  a  slave  to  his  master.  No 
hint  is  to  be  given  them  that  they  have  a  right  to 
demand  emancipation,  or  would  be  justified  in  running 
away.     Let  them  learn  to  behave  as  the  Lord's  free- 


vi.  I,  2.]      THE  NATURE  OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY.  185 

man.  Let  their  masters  learn  to  behave  as  the  Lord's 
bond-servants.  When  these  principles  have  worked 
themselves  out,  slavery  will  have  ceased  to  be. 

That  day  has  not  yet  come,  but  the  progress  already 
made,  especially  during  the  present  century,  leads 
us  to  hope  that  it  may  be  near.  But  the  extinction 
of  slavery  will  not  deprive  St.  Paul's  treatment  of 
it  of  its  practical  interest  and  value.  His  inspired 
wisdom  in  dealing  with  this  problem  ought  to  be  our 
guide  in  dealing  with  the  scarcely  less  momentous 
problems  which  confront  us  at  the  present  day.  We 
have  social  difficulties  to  deal  with,  whose  magnitude 
and  character  make  them  not  unlike  that  of  slavery 
in  the  first  ages  of  Christianity.  There  are  the  re- 
lations between  capital  and  labour,  the  prodigious 
inequalities  in  the  distribution  of  wealth,  the  degrada- 
tion which  is  involved  in  the  crowding  of  population 
in  the  great  centres  of  industry.  In  attempting  to 
remedy  such  things,  let  us,  while  we  catch  enthusiasm 
from  St.  Paul's  sympathetic  zeal,  not  forget  his 
patience  and  discretion.  Monstrous  evils  are  not, 
like  giants  in  the  old  romances,  to  be  slain  at  a  blow. 
They  are  deeply  rooted  ;  and  if  we  attempt  to  tear 
them  up,  we  may  pull  up  the  foundations  of  society 
along  with  them.  We  must  be  content  to  work  slowly 
and  without  violence.  We  have  no  right  to  preach 
revolution  and  plunder  to  those  who  are  suffering 
from  undeserved  poverty,  any  more  than  St.  Paul 
had  to  preach  revolt  to  the  slaves.  Drastic  remedies 
of  that  kind  will  cause  much  enmity,  and  perhaps 
bloodshed,  in  the  carrying  out,  and  will  work  no 
permanent  cure  in  the  end.  It  is  incredible  that  the 
well-being  of  mankind  can  be  promoted  by  stirring 
up  ill-will  and  hatred  between   a    suffering  class  and 


i86  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

those  who  seem  to  have  it  in  their  power  to  reheve 
them.  Charity,  we  know,  never  faileth ;  but  neither 
Scripture  nor  experience  has  taught  us  that  violence 
is  a  sure  road  to  success.  We  need  more  faith  in 
the  principles  of  Christianity  and  in  their  power  to 
promote  happiness  as  well  as  godliness.  What  is 
required,  is  not  a  sudden  redistribution  of  wealth,  or 
laws  to  prevent  its  accumulation,  but  a  proper  appre- 
ciation of  its  value.  Rich  and  poor  alike  have  yet 
to  learn  what  is  really  worth  having  in  this  world. 
It  is  not  wealth,  but  happiness.  And  happiness  is 
to  be  found  neither  in  gaining,  nor  in  possessing,  nor 
in  spending  money,  but  in  being  useful.  To  serve 
others,  to  spend  and  be  spent  for  them, — that  is  the 
ideal  to  place  before  mankind ;  and  .just  in  proportion 
as  it  is  reached,  will  the  frightful  inequalities  between 
class  and  class,  and  letween  man  and  man,  cease  to 
be.  It  is  a  lesson  that  takes  much  teaching  and 
much  learning.  Meanwhile  it  seems  a  terrible  thing 
to  leave  whole  generations  suffering  from  destitution, 
just  as  it  was  a  terrible  thing  to  leave  whole  gener- 
ations groaning  in  slavery.  But  a  general  manu- 
mission would  not  have  helped  matters  then  ;  and  a 
general  distribution  to  the  indigent  would  not  help 
matters  now.  The  remedy  adopted  then  was  a  slow 
one,  but  it  has  been  efficacious.  The  master  was  not 
told  to  emancipate  his  slave,  and  the  slave  was  not 
told  to  run  away  from  his  master;  but  each  was 
charged  to  behave  to  the  other,  the  master  in  com- 
manding and  the  slave  in  obeying,  as  Christian  to 
Christian  in  the  sight  of  God.  Let  us  not  doubt 
that  the  same  remedy  now,  if  faithfully  applied,  will 
be  not  less  effectual.  Do  not  tell  the  rich  man  that 
he  must  share  his  wealth  with  those  who  have  nothing. 


vi.  1,2.]      THE  NATURE  OF  ROMAN  SLAVERY.  187 

Do  not  tell  the  poor  man  that  he  has  a  right  to  a 
share,  and  may  seize  it,  if  it  is  not  given.  But  by 
precept  and  example  show  to  both  alike  that  the 
one  thing  worth  living  for  is  to  promote  the  well- 
being  of  others.  And  let  the  experience  of  the  past 
convince  us  that  any  remedy  which  involves  a  violent 
reconstruction  of  society  is  sure  to  be  dangerous 
and  may  easily  prove  futile. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  GAIN  OF  A  LOVE  OF  GODLINESS,  AND   THE 
UNGODLINESS  OF  A  LOVE   OF  GAIN. 

**  Wranglings  of  men  corrupted  in  mind  and  bereft  of  the  truth, 
supposing  that  godliness  is  a  way  of  gain.  But  godliness  with  con- 
tentment is  great  gain  :  for  we  brought  nothing  into  the  world,  for 
neither  can  we  carry  anything  out.  .  .  . 

*'  Charge  them  that  are  rich  in  this  present  world,  that  they  be  not 
high  minded,  nor  have  their  hope  set  on  the  uncertainty  of  riches,  but 
on  God,  Who  gives  us  richly  all  things  to  enjoy ;  that  they  do  good, 
that  they  be  rich  in  good  works,  that  they  be  ready  to  distribute, 
willing  to  communicate ;  laying  up  in  store  for  themselves  a  good 
foundation  against  the  time  to  come,  that  they  may  lay  hold  on  the 
life  which  is  life  indeed." — I  Tim.  vi.  5 — 7,  17 — 19. 

IT  is  evident  that  the  subject  of  avarice  is  much  in 
the  Apostle's  mind  during  the  writing  of  the  last 
portion  of  this  Epistle.  He  comes  upon  it  here  in 
connexion  with  the  teachers  of  false  doctrine,  and 
speaks  strongly  on  the  subject.  Then  he  writes  what 
appears  to  be  a  solemn  conclusion  to  the  letter  (vv.  1 1 — 
16).  And  then,  as  if  he  was  oppressed  by  the  danger 
of  large  possessions  as  promoting  an  avaricious  spirit, 
he  charges  Timothy  to  warn  the  wealthy  against  the 
folly  and  wickedness  of  selfish  hoarding.  He,  as  it 
were,  re-opens  his  letter  in  order  to  add  this  charge, 
and  then  writes  a  second  conclusion.  He  cannot  feel 
happy  until  he  has  driven  home  this  lesson  about  the 
right  way  of  making  gain,  and  the  right  way  of  laying 
up  treasure.     It  is  such  a  common  heresy,  and  such  a 


vi.  5-7, » 7-^9-]    GAIN  OF  A  LOVE  OF  GODLINESS.  189 

fatal  one,  to  believe  that  gold  is  wealth,  and  that  wealth 
is  the  chief  good. 

"  Wranglings  of  men  corrupted  in  mind  and  bereft  of 
the  truth."  That  is  how  St.  Paul  describes  the  "dissi- 
dence  of  dissent/'  as  it  was  known  to  him  by  grievous 
experience.  There  were  men  who  had  once  been  in 
possession  of  a  sound  mind,  whereby  to  recognize  and 
grasp  the  truth  ;  and  they  had  grasped  the  truth,  and 
for  a  time  retained  it.  But  they  had  "  given  heed  to 
seducing  spirits,"  and  had  allowed  themselves  to  be 
robbed  of  both  these  treasures, — not  only  the  truth,  but 
the  mental  power  of  appreciating  the  truth.  And  what 
had  they  in  the  place  of  what  they  had  lost  ?  Incessant 
contentions  among  themselves.  Having  lost  the  truth, 
they  had  no  longer  any  centre  of  agreement.  Error 
is  manifold  and  its  paths  are  labyrinthine.  When  two 
minds  desert  the  truth,  there  is  no  reason  why  they 
should  remain  in  harmony  any  more ;  and  each  has  a 
right  to  believe  that  his  own  substitute  for  the  truth  is 
the  only  one  worth  considering.  As  proof  that  their 
soundness  of  mind  is  gone,  and  that  they  are  far  away 
from  the  truth,  St.  Paul  states  the  fact  that  they  "sup- 
pose that  godliness  is  a  way  of  gain." 

It  is  well  known  that  the  scholars  whose  labours  during 
the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries  produced  at  last 
the  Authorized  Version,  were  not  masters  of  the  force  of 
the  Greek  article.  Its  uses  had  not  yet  been  analysed 
in  the  thorough  way  in  which  they  have  been  analysed 
in  the  present  century.  Perhaps  the  text  before  us  is 
the  most  remarkable  among  the  numerous  errors  which 
are  the  result  of  this  imperfect  knowledge.  It  seems 
so  strange  that  those  who  perpetrated  it  were  not 
puzzled  by  their  own  mistake,  and  that  their  perplexity 
did  not  put  them  right.     What  kind  of  people  could 


190  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

they  have  been  who  ^'  supposed  that  gain  was  godli- 
ness "  ?  Did  such  an  idea  ever  before  enter  into  the 
head  of  any  person  ?  And  if  it  did,  could  he  have 
retained  it?  People  have  devoted  their  whole  souls 
to  gain,  and  have  worshipped  it  as  if  it  were  Divine. 
But  no  man  ever  yet  believed,  or  acted  as  if  he  believed, 
that  gain  was  godliness.  To  make  money-getting  a 
substitute  for  religion,  in  allowing  it  to  become  the  one 
absorbing  occupation  of  mind  and  body,  is  one  thing : 
to  believe  it  to  be  religion  is  quite  another. 

But  what  St.  Paul  says  of  the  opinions  of  these 
perverted  men  is  exactly  the  converse  of  this  :  not  that 
they  supposed  "gain  to  be  godliness,"  but  that  they 
supposed  ''  godhness  to  be  a  means  of  gain."  They 
considered  godliness,  or  rather  the  "  form  of  godliness  " 
which  was  all  that  they  really  possessed,  to  be  a  profit- 
able investment.  Christianity  to  them  was  a  "pro- 
fession "  in  the  mercantile  sense,  and  a  profession  that 
paid  :  and  they  embarked  upon  it,  just  as  they  would 
upon  any  other  speculation  which  oftered  equally  good 
hopes  of  being  remunerative. 

The  Apostle  takes  up  this  perverted  and  mean  view 
of  religion,  and  shows  that  in  a  higher  sense  it  is  per- 
fectly true.  Just  as  Caiaphas,  while  meaning  to  express 
a  base  and  cold-blooded  poHcy  of  expediency,  had  given 
utterance  to  a  profound  truth  about  Christ,  so  these 
false  teachers  had  got  hold  of  principles  which  could 
be  formulated  so  as  to  express  a  profound  truth  about 
Christ's  religion.  There  is  a  very  real  sense  in  which 
godliness  (genuine  godliness  and  not  the  mere  externals 
of  it)  is  even  in  this  world  a  fruitful  source  of  gain. 
Honesty,  so  long  as  it  be  not  practised  merely  as  a 
pohcy,  is  the  best  policy.  "  Righteousness  exalteth  a 
nation " :  it   invariably    pays   in    the   long   run.     And 


VI. 5-7, 17-19-]    GAIN  OF  A  LOX^E  OF  GODLINESS.  I91 

so  "Godliness  with  contentment  /s  great  gain."  They 
suppose  chat  godhness  is  a  good  investment" : — in  quite 
a  different  sense  from  that  which  tliey  have  in  their 
minds,  it  really  is  so.  And  the  reason  of  this  is 
manifest. 

It  has  already  been  shown  that  '^  godliness  is  profit- 
able for  all  things."  It  makes  a  man  a  better  master, 
a  better  servant,  a  better  citizen,  and  both  in  mind  and 
body  a  healthier  and  therefore  a  stronger  man.  Above 
all  it  makes  him  a  happier  man ;  for  it  gives  him  that 
which  is  the  foundation  of  all  happiness  in  this  life, 
and  the  foretaste  of  happiness  in  the  world  to  come, — 
a  good  conscience.  A  possession  of  such  value  as 
this  cannot  be  otherwise  than  great  gain  :  especially 
if  it  be  united,  as  it  probably  will  be  united,  with  con- 
tentment. It  is  in  the  nature  of  the  godly  man  to  be 
content  with  what  God  has  given  him.  But  godliness 
and  contentment  are  not  identical ;  and  therefore,  in 
order  to  make  his  meaning  quite  clear,  the  Apostle 
says  not  merely  "godhness,"  but  "godhness  with 
contentment."  Either  of  these  qualities  far  exceeds 
in  value  the  profitable  investment  which  the  false 
teachers  saw  in  the  profession  of  godliness.  They 
found  that  it  paid;  that  it  had  a  tendency  to  advance 
their  worldly  interests.  But  after  all  even  mere  worldly 
wealth  does  not  consist  in  the  abundance  of  the  things 
which  a  man  possesses.  That  man  is  well  off,  who  has 
as  much  as  he  wants ;  and  that  man  is  rich,  who  has 
more  than  he  wants.  Wealth  cannot  be  measured  by 
any  absolute  standard.  We  cannot  name  an  income 
to  rise  above  which  is  riches,  and  to  fall  below  which 
is  poverty.  Nor  is  it  enough  to  take  into  account 
the  unavoidable  calls  which  are  made  upon  the  man's 
purse,  in  order  to  know  whether  he  is  well  off  or  not : 


192  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

we  must  also  know  something  of  his  desires.  When 
all  legitimate  claims  have  been  discharged,  is  he 
satisfied  with  what  remains  for  his  own  use  ?  Is  he 
contented?  If  he  is,  then  he  is  indeed  well-to-do.  If 
he  is  not,  then  the  chief  element  of  wealth  is  still  lack- 
ing to  him. 

The  Apostle  goes  on  to  enforce  the  truth  of  the 
statement  that  even  in  this  world  godliness  with 
contentment  is  a  most  valuable  possession,  far  superior 
to  a  large  income  :  and  to  urge  that,  even  from  the 
point  of  view  of  earthly  prosperity  and  happiness, 
those  people  make  a  fatal  mistake  who  devote  them- 
selves to  the  accumulation  of  wealth,  without  placing 
any  check  upon  their  growing  and  tormenting  desires, 
and  without  knowing  how  to  make  a  good  use  of  the 
wealth  which  they  are  accumulating.  With  a  view 
to  enforce  all  this  he  repeats  two  well-known  and 
indisputable  propositions:  ''We  brought  nothing  into 
the  world "  and  "  We  can  carry  nothing  out."  As  to 
the  words  which  connect  these  two  propositions  in 
the  original  Greek,  there  seems  to  be  some  primitive 
error  which  we  cannot  now  correct  with  any  certainty. 
We  are  not  sure  whether  one  proposition  is  given  as 
a  reason  for  accepting  the  other,  and,  if  so,  which  is 
premise  and  which  is  conclusion.  But  this  is  of  no 
moment.  Each  statement  singly  has  been  abundantly 
proved  by  the  experience  of  mankind,  and  no  one 
would  be  likely  to  dispute  either.  One  of  the  earliest 
books  in  human  literature  has  them  as  its  opening 
moral.  *'  Naked  came  I  out  of  my  mother's  womb,  and 
naked  shall  I  return  thither,"  are  Job's  words  in  the 
day  of  his  utter  ruin;  and  they  have  been  assented 
to  by  millions  of  hearts  ever  since. 

"  We  brought  nothing  into  the  world."     What  right 


vi. 5-7, 17-19]    GAIN  OF  A  LOVE  OF  GODLINESS.  193 

then  have  we  to  be  discontented  with  what  has  since 
been  given  to  us  ?  "  We  can  take  nothing  out." 
What  folly,  therefore,  to  spend  all  our  time  in  amassing 
wealth,  which  at  the  time  of  our  departure  we  shall 
be  obliged  to  leave  behind  us !  There  is  the  case 
against  avarice  in  a  nutshell.  Never  contented.  Never 
knowing  what  it  is  to  rest  and  be  thankful.  Always 
nervously  anxious  about  the  preservation  of  what  has 
been  gained,  and  laboriously  toiling  in  order  to  augment 
it.  What  a  contrast  to  the  godly  man,  who  has  found 
true  independence  in  a  trustful  dependence  upon  the 
God  Whom  he  serves  !  Godliness  with  contentment 
is  indeed  great  gain. 

There  is  perhaps  no  more  striking  example  of  the 
incorrigible  perversity  of  human  nature  than  the  fact 
that,  in  spite  of  all  experience  to  the  contrary,  genera- 
tion after  generation  continues  to  look  upon  mere 
wealth  as  the  thing  best  worth  striving  after.  Century 
after  century  we  find  men  telling  us,  often  with  much 
emphasis  and  bitterness,  that  great  possessions  are  an 
imposture,  that  they  promise  happiness  and  never  give 
it.  And  yet  those  very  men  continue  to  devote  their 
whole  energies  to  the  retention  and  increase  of  their 
possessions :  or,  if  they  do  not,  they  hardly  ever 
succeed  in  convincing  others  that  happiness  is  not 
to  be  found  in  such  things.  If  they  could  succeed, 
there  would  be  far  more  contented,  and  therefore  far 
more  happy  people  in  the  world  than  can  be  found 
at  present.  It  is  chiefly  the  desire  for  greater  temporal 
advantages  than  v/e  have  at  present  that  makes  us 
discontented.  We  should  be  a  long  way  on  the  road 
to  contentment,  if  we  could  thoroughly  convince 
ourselves  that  what  are  commonly  called  temporal 
advantages — such  as-  large  possessions,  rank,   power, 

13 


194  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

honours,  and  the  Hke — are  on  the  whole  not  advan- 
tages ;  that  they  more  often  detract  from  this  world's 
joys  than  augment  them,  while  they  are  always  a 
serious  danger,  and  sometimes  a  grievous  impediment, 
in  reference  to  the  joys  of  the  world  to  come. 

What  man  of  wealth  and  position  does  not  feel  day 
by  day  the  worries  and  anxieties  and  obligations, 
which  his  riches  and  rank  impose  upon  him.  Does  he 
not  often  wish  that  he  could  retire  to  some  cottage  and 
there  live  quietly  on  a  few  hundreds  a  year,  and  some- 
times even  seriously  think  of  doing  it  ?  But  at  other 
times  he  fancies  that  his  unrest  and  disquiet  is  owing 
to  his  not  having  enough.  If  he  could  only  have  some 
thousands  a  year  added  to  his  present  income,  then  he 
would  cease  to  be  anxious  about  the  future ;  he  could 
afford  to  lose  some  and  still  have  sufficent.  If  he  could 
only  attain  to  a  higher  position  in  society,  then  he 
would  feel  secure  from  detraction  or  serious  downfall ; 
he  would  be  able  to  treat  with  unconcerned  neglect  the 
criticisms  which  are  now  such  a  source  of  annoyance 
to  him.  And  in  most  cases  this  latter  view  prevails. 
What  determines  his  conduct  is  not  the  well-grounded 
suspicion  that  he  already  has  more  than  is  good  for 
him ;  that  it  is  his  abundance  which  is  destroying  his 
peace  of  mind  ;  but  the  baseless  conviction  that  an 
increase  of  the  gifts  of  this  world  will  win  for  him  the 
happiness  that  he  has  failed  to  secure.  The  experience 
of  the  past  rarely  destroys  this  fallacy.  He  knows  that 
his  enjoyment  of  life  has  not  increased  with  his  fortune. 
Perhaps  he  can  see  clearly  that  he  was  a  happier  man 
when  he  possessed  much  less.  But,  nevertheless,  he 
still  cherishes  the  belief  that  with  a  few  things  more  he 
would  be  contented,  and  for  those  few  things  more  he 
continues  to  slave.     There  is  no  man  in  this  world  that 


vi.  5-7,17-19-]     GAIN  OF  A   LOVE  OF  GODLINESS.  195 

has  not  found  out  over  and  over  again  that  success, 
even  the  most  complete  success,  in  the  attainment  of 
any  worldly  desire,  however  innocent  or  laudable,  does 
not  bring  the  permanent  satisfaction  which  was  antici- 
pated. Sooner  or  later  the  feeling  of  satiety,  and 
therefore  of  disappointment,  must  set  in.  And  of  all 
the  countless  thousands  who  have  had  this  experience, 
how  few  there  are  that  have  been  able  to  draw  the 
right  conclusion,  and  to  act  upon  it ! 

And  when  we  take  into  account  the  difficulties  and 
dangers  which  a  large  increase  in  the  things  of  this 
world  places  in  the  way  of  our  advance  towards  moral 
and  spiritual  perfection,  we  have  a  still  stronger  case 
against  the  fallacy  that  increase  of  wealth  brings  an 
increase  in  well-being.  The  care  of  the  things  which 
we  possess  takes  up  thought  and  time,  which  could  be 
far  more  happily  employed  on  nobler  objects ;  and  it 
leads  us  gradually  into  the  practical  conviction  that 
these  nobler  objects,  which  have  so  continually  to  be 
neglected  in  order  to  make  room  for  other  cares,  are 
really  of  less  importance.  It  is  impossible  to  go  on 
ignoring  the  claims  which  intellectual  and  spiritual 
exercises  have  upon  our  attention  without  becoming 
less  alive  to  those  claims.  We  become,  not  contented, 
but  self-sufhcent  in  the  worst  sense.  We  acquiesce  in 
the  low  and  narrow  aims  which  a  devotion  to  worldly 
advancement  has  imposed  upon  us.  We  habitually  act 
as  if  there  were  no  other  life  but  this  one ;  and  con- 
sequently we  cease  to  take  much  interest  in  the  other 
life  beyond  the  grave;  while  even  as  regards  the 
things  of  this  world  our  interests  become  confined  to 
those  objects  which  can  gratify  our  absorbing  desire 
for  financial  prosperity. 

Nor  does  the  mischief  done  to  our  best  moral  and 


196  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

spiritual  interests  end  here ;  especially  if  we  are  what 
the  world  calls  successful.  The  man  who  steadily 
devotes  himself  to  the  advancement  of  his  worldly 
position,  and  who  succeeds  in  a  very  marked  way  in 
raising  himself,  is  likely  to  acquire  in  the  process  a 
kind  of  brutal  self-confidence,  very  detrimental  to  his 
character.  He  started  with  nothing,  and  he  now  has 
a  fortune.  He  was  once  a  shop-boy,  and  he  is  now 
a  country  gentleman.  And  he  has  done  it  all  by  his 
own  shrewdness,  energy,  and  perseverance.  The 
result  is  that  he  makes  no  account  of  Providence,  and 
very  little  of  the  far  greater  merits  of  less  conspicuously 
successful  men.  A  contempt  for  men  and  things  that 
would  have  given  him  a  higher  view  of  this  life,  and 
some  idea  of  a  better  life,  is  the  penalty  which  he  pays 
for  his  disastrous  prosperity. 

But  his  case  is  one  of  the  most  hopeless,  whose 
desire  for  worldly  advantages  has  settled  down  into  a 
mere  love  of  money.  The  worldly  man,  whose  leading 
ambition  is  to  rise  to  a  more  prominent  place  in  society, 
to  outshine  his  neighbours  in  the  appointments  of  his 
house  and  in  the  splendour  of  his  entertainments,  to  be 
of  importance  on  all  pubhc  occasions,  and  the  like,  is 
morally  in  a  far  less  desperate  condition  than  the  miser. 
There  is  no  vice  more  deadening  to  every  noble  and 
tender  feeling  than  avarice.  It  is  capable  of  extin- 
guishing all  mercy,  all  pity,  all  natural  affection.  It 
can  make  the  claims  of  the  suffering  and  sorrowful,  even 
when  they  are  combined  with  those  of  an  old  friend,  or 
a  wife,  or  a  child,  fall  on  deaf  ears.  It  can  banish  from 
the  heart  not  only  all  love,  but  all  shame  and  self- 
respect.  What  does  the  miser  care  for  the  execrations 
of  outraged  society,  so  long  as  he  can  keep  his  gold  ? 
There  is  no  heartless  or  mean  act,  and  very  often  no 


vi.5-7,  I7-I9-]     GAIN  OF  A  LOVE  OF  GODLINESS.  197 

deed  of  fraud  or  violence,  from  which  he  will  shrink  in 
order  to  augment  or  preserve  his  hoards.  Assuredly 
the  Apostle  is  right  when  he  calls  the  love  of  money  a 
"root  of  all  kinds  of  evil."  There  is  no  iniquity  to 
which  it  does  not  form  one  of  the  nearest  roads.  Every 
criminal  who  wants  an  accomplice  can  have  the  avaricious 
man  as  his  helper,  if  he  only  bids  high  enough. 

And  note  that,  unlike  almost  every  other  vice,  it  never 
loses  its  hold :  its  deadly  grip  is  never  for  an  instant 
relaxed.  The  selfish  man  can  at  a  crisis  become  self- 
sacrificing,  at  any  rate  for  a  time.  The  sensualist  has 
his  moments  when  his  nobler  nature  gets  the  better  of 
his  passions,  and  he  spares  those  whom  he  thought  to 
make  his  victims.  The  drunkard  can  sometimes  be 
lured  by  affection  or  innocent  enjoyments  to  forego 
the  gratification  of  his  craving.  And  there  are  times 
when  even  pride,  that  watchful  and  subtle  foe,  sleeps  at 
its  post  and  suffers  humble  thoughts  to  enter.  But  the 
demon  avarice  never  slumbers,  and  is  never  off"  its 
guards  When  it  has  once  taken  full  possession  of  a 
man's  heart,  neither  love,  nor  pity,  nor  shame,  can  ever 
surprise  it  into  an  act  of  generosity.  We  all  of  us 
have  our  impulses ;  and,  however  little  we  may  act 
upon  them,  we  are  conscious  that  some  of  our  impulses 
are  generous.  Some  of  the  worst  of  us  could  lay 
claim  to  as  much  as  that.  But  the  miser's  nature  is 
poisoned  at  its  very  source.  Even  his  impulses  are 
tainted.  Sights  and  sounds  which  make  other  hardened 
sinners  at  least  wish  to  help,  if  only  to  relieve  their  own 
distress  at  such  pitiful  things,  make  him  instinctively 
tighten  his  purse-strings.  Gold  is  his  god  ;  and  there  is 
no  god  who  exacts  from  his  worshippers  such  undivided 
and  unceasing  devotion.  Family,  friends,  country, 
comfort,  health,  and  honour  must  all  be  sacrificed  at 


198  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

its  shrine.  Certainly  the  lust  for  gold  is  one  of  those 
^'  foolish  and  hurtful  lusts,  such  as  drown  men  in 
destruction  and  perdition." 

In  wealthy  Ephesus,  with  its  abundant  commerce, 
the  desire  to  be  rich  was  a  common  passion ;  and  St. 
Paul  feared — perhaps  he  knew — that  in  the  Church  in 
Ephesus  the  mischief  was  present  and  increasing. 
Hence  this  earnest  reiteration  of  strong  warnings 
against  it.  Hence  the  reopening  of  the  letter  in  order 
to  tell  Timothy  to  charge  the  rich  not  to  be  self- 
confident  and  arrogant,  not  to  trust  in  the  wealth  which 
may  fail  them,  but  in  the  God  Who  cannot  do  so ;  and 
to  remind  them  that  the  only  way  to  make  riches  secure 
is  to  give  them  to  God  and  to  His  work.  The  wealthy 
heathen  in  Ephesus  were  accustomed  to  deposit  their 
treasures  with  "  the  great  goddess  Diana/'  whose 
temple  was  both  a  sanctuary  and  a  bank.  Let  Christian 
merchants  deposit  theirs  with  God  by  being  "  rich  in 
good  works ; "  so  that,  when  He  called  them  to  Himself, 
they  might  receive  their  own  with  usury,  and  ^'  lay  hold 
on  the  life  which  is  life  indeed." 


THE  EPISTLE   TO  TITUS. 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS.— HIS  LIFE  AND 
CHARACTER. 

"Paul,  a  servant  of  God,  and  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ  .  .  .  tr 
Titus,  my  true  child  after  a  common  faith  :  Grace  and  peace  from  Cod 
the  Father,  and  Christ  Jesus  our  Saviour  " — Titus  i.  I,  4. 

THE  title  "  Pastoral  Epistle "  is  as  appropriate  to 
the  Epistle  to  Titus  as  to  the  First  Epistle  to 
Timothy.  Although  there  is  a  good  deal  in  the  letter 
that  is  personal  rather  than  pastoral,  yet  the  pastoral 
element  is  the  main  one.  The  bulk  of  the  letter  is 
taken  up  with  questions  of  Church  doctrine  and  govern- 
ment, the  treatment  of  the  faithful  members  of  the  con- 
gregation and  of  the  unruly  and  erring.  The  letter 
is  addressed  to  Titus,  not  as  a  private  individual,  but 
as  the  delegate  of  the  Apostle  holding  office  in  Crete. 
Hence,  as  in  the  First  Epistle  to  Timothy,  St.  Paul 
styles  himself  an  Apostle:  and  the  official  character 
of  this  letter  is  still  further  marked  by  the  long  and 
solemn  superscription.  It  is  evidently  intended  to  be 
read  by  other  persons  besides  the  minister  to  whom 
it  is  addressed. 

The  question  of  the  authenticity  of  the  Epistle  to 
Titus,  has  already  been  in  a  great  measure  discussed 
in  the  first  of  these  expositions.  It  was  pointed  out 
there  that  the  external  evidence  for  the  genuineness  in 


202  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS, 

all  three  cases  is  very  strong,  beginning  almost  certainly 
with  Clement  of  Rome,  Ignatius,  and  Polycarp,  becom- 
ing clear  and  certain  in  Irenaeus,  and  being  abundant 
in  Clement  of  Alexandria  and  Tertullian.  Of  the  very 
few  people  who  rejected  them,  Tatian  seems  to  have 
been  almost  alone  in  making  a  distinction  between 
them.  He  accepted  the  Epistle  to  Titus,  while  reject- 
ing the  two  to  Timothy.  We  may  rejoice  that  Tatian, 
Marcion,  and  others  raised  the  question.  It  cannot  be 
said  that  the  Churches  accepted  this  Epistle  without 
consideration.  Those  who  possessed  evidence  now  no 
longer  extant  were  convinced,  in  spite  of  the  objections 
urged,  that  in  this  letter  and  its  two  companions  we 
have  genuine  writings  of  St.  Paul. 

With  regard  to  modern  objections,  it  may  be  freely 
admitted  that  there  is  no  room  in  St.  Paul's  life,  as  given 
in  the  Acts,  for  the  journey  to  Crete,  and  the  winter  at 
Nicopolis  required  by  the  Epistle  to  Titus.  But  there 
is  plenty  of  room  for  both  of  these  outside  the  Acts,  viz., 
between  the  first  and  second  imprisonment  of  the 
Apostle.  And,  as  we  have  already  seen  good  reason 
for  believing  in  the  case  of  I  Timothy,  the  condition 
of  the  Church  indicated  in  this  letter  is  such  as  was 
already  in  existence  in  St.  Paul's  time ;  and  the 
language  used  in  treating  of  it  resembles  that  of  the 
Apostle  in  a  way  which  helps  us  to  believe  that  we 
are  reading  his  own  words  and  not  those  of  a  skilful 
imitator.  For  this  imitator  must  have  been  a  strange 
person ;  very  skilful  in  some  things,  very  eccentric  in 
others.  Why  does  he  give  St.  Paul  and  Titus  a  work 
in  Crete  of  which  there  is  no  mention  in  the  Acts  ? 
Why  does  he  make  the  Apostle  ask  Titus  to  meet  him 
in  Nicopolis,  a  place  never  named  in  connexion  with 
St,   Paul?      Why  bracket  a  well-known  person,  like 


1.1,4.1  ^^^  LIFE  AND   CHARACTER.  203 

Apollos,  with  an  utterly  unknown  person,  such  as 
Zenas  ?     It  is  not  easy  to  believe  in  this  imitator. 

Yet  another  point  of  resemblance  should  be  noted. 
Here,  as  in  i  Timothy,  there  is  no  careful  arrangement 
of  the  material.  The  subjects  are  not  put  together  in 
a  studied  order,  as  in  a  treatise  with  a  distinct  theo- 
logical or  controversial  purpose.  They  follow  one 
another  in  a  natural  manner,  just  as  they  occur  to  the 
writer.  Persons  with  their  hearts  and  heads  full  of 
things  which  they  wish  to  say  to  a  friend,  do  not  sit 
down  with  an  analysis  before  them  to  secure  an  orderly 
arrangement  of  what  they  wish  to  write.  They  start 
with  one  of  the  main  topics,  and  then  the  treatment 
of  this  suggests  something  else  :  and  they  are  not  dis- 
tressed if  they  repeat  themselves,  or  if  they  have  to 
return  to  a  subject  which  has  been  touched  upon  before 
and  then  dropped.  This  is  just  the  kind  of  writing 
which  meets  us  once  more  in  the  letter  to  Titus.  It  is 
thoroughly  natural.  It  is  not  easy  to  believe  that  a 
forger  in  the  second  century  could  have  thrown  himself 
with  such  simplicity  into  the  attitude  which  the  letter 
pre-supposes. 

It  is  not  possible  to  determine  whether  this  letter 
was  written  before  or  after  the  First  to  Timothy.  But 
it  was  certainly  written  before  the  Second  to  Timothy. 
Therefore,  while  one  has  no  sufficient  reason  for  taking 
it  before  the  one,  one  has  excellent  reason  for  taking 
it  before  the  other.  The  precise  year  and  the  precise 
place  in  which  it  was  written,  v/e  must  be  content  to 
leave  unsettled.  It  may  be  doubted  whether  either  the 
one  or  the  other  would  throw  much  light  on  the  contents 
of  the  letter.  These  are  determined  by  what  the 
Apostle  remembers  and  expects  concerning  affairs  in 
Crete,  and  not  by   his  own   surroundings.     It  is  the 


204  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

official  position  of  Titus  in  Crete  which  is  chiefly  before 
his  mind. 

Titus,  as  we  learn  from  the  opening  words  of  the 
letter,  was,  like  Timothy,  converted  to  Christianity  by 
St.  Paul.  The  Apostle  calls  him  *'  his  true  child  after 
a  common  faith."  As  regards  his  antecedents  he  was 
a  marked  contrast  to  Timothy.  Whereas  Timothy  had 
been  brought  up  as  a  Jew  under  the  care  of  his  Jewish 
mother  Eunice,  and  had  been  circumcised  by  St.  Paul's 
desire,  Titus  was  wholly  a  Gentile,  and  ''  was  not  com- 
pelled to  be  circumcised,"  as  St.  Paul  states  in  the 
passage  in  which  he  tells  the  Galatians  (ii.  I — 3)  that 
he  took  Titus  with  him  to  Jerusalem  on  the  occasion 
when  he  and  Barnabas  went  thither  seventeen  years 
after  St.  Paul's  conversion.  Paul  and  Barnabas  went 
up  to  Jerusalem  on  that  occasion  to  protect  Gentile 
converts  from  the  Judaizers,  who  wanted  to  make  all 
such  converts  submit  to  circumcision.  Titus  and  others 
went  with  them  as  representatives  of  the  Gentile  con- 
verts, and  in  their  persons  a  formal  protest  was  made 
against  this  imposition.  It  is  quite  possible  that  Titus 
was  with  St.  Paul  when  he  wrote  to  the  Galatians; 
and  if  so  this  mention  of  him  becomes  all  the  more 
natural.  We  may  fancy  the  Apostle  saying  to  Titus, 
as  he  wrote  the  letter,  "  I  shall  remind  them  of  your  case, 
which  is  very  much  to  the  point."  Whether  Titus  was 
personally  known  to  the  Galatian  Church  is  not  certain  ; 
but  he  is  spoken  of  as  one  of  whom  they  have  at  any 
rate  heard. 

Titus  was  almost  certainly  one  of  those  who  carried 
the  First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthian  Church,  i.e.,  the 
first  of  the  two  that  have  come  down  to  us  ;  and  St. 
Paul  awaited  his  report  of  the  reception  which  the 
letter  had  met  with  at  Corinth  with  the  utmost  anxiety. 


i.  1,4.]  HIS  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER.  205 

And  he  was  quite  certainly  one  of  those  who  were 
entrusted  with  the  Second  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians. 
St.  Paul  wrote  the  first  letter  at  Ephesus  about  Easter, 
probably  in  the  year  57.  He  left  Ephesus  about 
Pentecost,  and  went  to  Troas,  where  he  hoped  to  meet 
Titus  with  news  from  Corinth.  After  waiting  in  vain 
he  went  on  to  Macedonia  in  grievous  anxiety ;  and 
there  Titus  met  him.  He  at  once  began  the  second 
letter,  which  apparently  was  written  piece-meal  during 
the  journey ;  and  when  it  was  completed  he  sent  Titus 
back  to  Corinth  with  it. 

That  Titus  should  twice  have  been  sent  as  the 
messenger  and  representative  of  St  Paul  to  a  Church 
in  which  difficulties  of  the  gravest  kind  had  arisen, 
gives  us  a  clear  indication  of  the  Apostle's  estimate  of 
his  character.  He  must  have  been  a  person  of  firmness, 
discretion,  and  tact.  There  was  the  monstrous  case  of 
incest,  the  disputes  between  the  rival  factions,  conten- 
tions in  public  worship  and  even  at  the  Eucharist, 
litigation  before  the  heathen,  and  wild  ideas  about  the 
resurrection,  not  to  mention  other  matters  which  were 
difficult  enough,  although  of  a  less  burning  character. 
And  in  all  these  questions  it  was  the  vain,  fitful, 
vivacious,  and  sensitive  Corinthians  who  had  to  be 
managed  and  induced  to  take  the  Apostle's  words  (which 
sometimes  were  very  sharp  and  severe)  patiently.  Nor 
was  this  all.  Besides  the  difficulties  in  the  Church  of 
Corinth  there  was  the  collection  for  the  poor  Christians 
in  Judaea,  about  which  St.  Paul  was  deeply  interested, 
and  which  had  not  been  progressing  in  Corinth  as  he 
wished.  St.  Paul  was  doubly  anxious  that  it  should 
be  a  success ;  first,  because  it  proved  to  the  Jewish 
converts  that  his  interest  in  them  was  substantial,  in 
spite  of  his  opposition  to  some  of  their  views ;  secondly, 


2o6  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

because  it  served  to  counteract  the  tendency  to  part 
asunder,  which  was  manifesting  itself  between  the 
Jewish  and  Gentile  Christians.  And  in  carrying  out 
St.  Paul's  instructions  about  these  matters  Titus  evi- 
dently had  to  suffer  a  good  deal  of  opposition  ;  and 
hence  the  Apostle  writes  a  strong  commendation  of 
him,  coupling  him  with  himself  in  his  mission  and  zeal. 
"  Whether  any  inquire  about  Titus,  he  is  my  partner 
and  my  fellow-worker  to  you-ward."  "  Thanks  be  to 
God,  which  putteth  the  same  earnest  care  for  you  into 
the  heart  of  Titus.  For  indeed  he  accepted  our  exhorta- 
tion ;  but  being  himself  very  earnest,  he  went  forth  unto 
you  of  his  own  accord."  With  great  delicacy  the 
Apostle  takes  care  that,  in  making  it  clear  to  the 
Corinthians  that  Titus  has  his  full  authority  for  what 
he  does,  no  slight  is  cast  upon  Titus's  own  zeal  and 
interest  in  the  Corinthians.  ^*  He  is  my  representative; 
but  he  comes  of  his  own  free  will  out  of  love  to  you. 
His  visit  to  you  is  his  own  doing ;  but  he  has  my 
entire  sanction.  He  is  neither  a  mechanical  delegate, 
nor  an  unauthorized  volunteer." 

A  curtain  falls  on  the  career  of  this  valued  help-mate 
of  the  great  Apostle,  from  the  time  when  he  carried  the 
second  letter  to  Corinth  to  the  time  when  the  letter  to 
himself  was  written.  The  interval  was  probably  some 
eight  or  ten  years,  about  which  we  know  only  one 
thing,  that  during  it,  and  probably  in  the  second  .half 
of  it,  the  Apostle  and  Titus  had  been  together  in  Crete, 
and  Titus  had  been  left  behind  to  consolidate  the 
Church  there.  The  Acts  tell  us  nothing.  Probably 
Titus  is  not  mentioned  in  the  book  at  all.  The  reading 
''  Titus  Justus"  in  xviii.  7,  is  possibly  correct,  but  it  is 
far  from  certain  :  and  even  if  it  were  certain,  we  should 
still  remain  in  doubt  whether  Titus  and  Titus  Justus 


i.  1,4-]  HJS  LIFE  AND   CHARACTER.  207 

are  the  same  person.  And  the  attempts  which  have 
been  made  to  identify  Titus  with  other  persons  in  the 
Acts,  such  as  Silvanus  or  Timothy,  are  scarcely  worth 
considering.  Nor  has  the  conjecture  that  Titus  is  the 
author  of  the  Acts  (as  Krenkel,  Jacobsen,  and  recently 
Hooykaas  in  the  Bible  for  Young  People  have  sug- 
gested) very  much  to  recommend  it.  The  hypothesis 
has  two  facts  to  support  it :  (i)  the  silence  of  the  Acts 
respecting  Titus,  and  (2)  the  fact  that  the  writer  must 
have  been  a  companion  of  St.  Paul.  But  these  two 
facts  are  equally  favourable  to  the  tradition  that  St. 
Luke  was  the  author,  a  tradition  for  which  the  evidence 
is  both  very  early  and  very  abundant.  Why  should 
such  a  tradition  yield  to  a  mere  conjecture  ? 

One  thing,  however,  we  may  accept  as  certain  : — that 
the  time  when  St.  Paul  was  being  carried  a  prisoner  to 
Rome  in  an  Alexandrian  corn-ship  which  touched  at 
Crete,  was  not  the  time  when  the  Church  in  Crete  was 
founded.  What  opportunity  would  a  prisoner  have  of 
doing  any  such  work  during  so  short  a  stay  ?  Cretans 
were  among  those  who  heard  the  Apostles  at  Pentecost 
preaching  in  their  own  tongue  the  wonderful  works  of 
God.  Some  of  these  may  have  returned  home  and 
formed  the  first  beginnings  of  a  Christian  congregation  : 
and  among  imperfect  converts  of  this  kind  we  might 
expect  to  find  the  errors  of  which  St.  Paul  treats  in  this 
Epistle.  But  we  can  hardly  suppose  that  there  was 
much  of  Christian  organization  until  St.  Paul  and  Titus 
came  to  the  island  after  the  Apostle's  first  Roman 
imprisonment.  And  the  necessity  of  having  some  one 
with  a  calm  head  and  a  firm  hand  on  the  spot,  forced 
the  Apostle  to  leave  his  companion  behind  him.  The 
man  who  had  been  so  successful  in  aiding  him  respect- 
ing the  difticulties  at  Corinth  was  just  the  man  to  be 


2o8  THE  EPISTLE  TO  TITUS. 

entrusted  with  a  somewhat  similar  but  rather  more 
permanent  post  in  Crete.  The  Cretans  were  less 
civilized,  but  in  their  own  way  scarcely  less  immoral, 
than  the  Corinthians ;  and  in  both  cases  the  national 
failings  caused  serious  trouble  in  the  Church.  In  both 
cases  ecclesiastical  authority  has  to  be  firmly  upheld 
against  those  who  question  and  oppose  it.  In  both  cases 
social  turbulence  has  to  be  kept  in  check.  In  both 
cases  there  is  a  tendency  to  wild  theological  and  philo- 
sophical speculations,  and  (on  the  part  of  some)  to  a 
bigoted  maintenance  of  Jewish  ordinances  and  super- 
stitions. Against  all  these  Titus  will  have  to  contend 
with  decision,  and  if  need  be  with  severity. 

The  letter,  in  which  directions  are  given  for  the 
carrying  out  of  all  this,  is  evidence  of  the  great  confi- 
dence which  the  Apostle  reposed  in  him.  One  of 
those  who  had  worked  also  in  Corinth,  is  either  already 
with  him  in  Crete,  or  may  soon  be  expected, — Apollos, 
and  with  him  Zenas.  So  that  the  Corinthian  experi- 
ence is  doubly  represented.  Other  helpers  are  coming, 
viz.,  Artemas  and  Tychicus ;  and,  when  they  arrive, 
Titus  will  be  free  to  rejoin  the  Apostle,  and  is  to  lose 
no  time  in  doing  so  at  Nicopolis. 

One  commission  Titus  has  in  Crete  which  very 
naturally  was  not  given  to  him  at  Corinth.  He  is  to 
perfect  the  organization  of  the  Christian  Church  in  the 
island  by  appointing  elders  in  every  city.  And  it  is 
this  charge  among  others  which  connects  this  letter  so 
closely  with  the  first  to  Timothy,  which  very  likely  was 
written  about  the  same  time. 

Whether  Titus  was  set  free  from  his  heavy  charge  in 
Crete  in  time  to  join  St.  Paul  at  Nicopolis,  we  have  no 
means  of  knowing.  At  the  time  when  the  second  letter 
to  Timothy  was  written,  Titus  had  gone  to  Dalmatia ; 


i.  1,4.]  HIS  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER,  209 

but  we  are  left  in  doubt  as  to  whether  he  had  gone 
thither  by  St.  Paul's  desire,  or  (hke  Demas  in  going  to 
Thessalonica)  against  it.  Nor  does  it  appear  whether 
Titus  .had  gone  to  Dalmatia  from  NicopoUs,  which 
is  not  far  distant,  or  had  followed  the  Apostle  from 
Nicopolis  to  Rome,  and  thence  gone  to  Illyria.  With 
the  journey  to  Dalmatia  our  knowledge  of  him  ends. 
Tradition  takes  him  back  to  Crete  as  permanent  bishop  ; 
and  in  the  Middle  Ages  the  Cretans  seem  to  have 
regarded  him  as  their  patron  saint. 

The  impression  left  upon  our  mind  by  the  Acts  is 
that  St.  Luke  knew  Timothy  and  did  not  know  Titus  : 
and  hence  frequently  mentions  the  one  and  says  nothing 
about  the  other.  The  impression  left  upon  our  mind 
by  the  mention  of  both  in  Paul's  Epistles,  and  by  the 
letters  addressed  to  each,  is  that  Titus,  though  less 
tenderly  beloved  by  the  Apostle,  was  the  stronger  man 
of  the  two.  St.  Paul  seems  to  be  less  anxious  about 
the  conduct  of  Titus  and  about  the  way  in  which  others 
will  treat  him.  The  directions  as  to  his  personal 
behaviour  are  much  slighter  than  in  the  case  of 
Timothy.  He  seems  to  credit  him  with  less  sensitive- 
ness and  more  decision  and  tact ;  perhaps  also  with 
less  liability  to  be  carried  away  by  fanatical  views  and 
practices  than  the  other. 

Titus  shares  with  Timothy  the  glory  of  having  given 
up  everything  in  order  to  throw  in  his  lot  with  St.  Paul, 
and  of  being  one  of  his  most  trusted  and  efficient 
helpers.  What  that  meant  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  tell 
us: — ceaseless  toil  and  anxiety,  much  shame  and 
reproach,  and  not  a  little  peril  to  life  itself.  He  also 
shares  with  Timothy  the  glory  of  being  willing,  when 
the  cause  required  such  sacrifice,  to  separate  from  the 
master  to  whom  he  had  surrendered  himself,  and  to 

14 


2IO  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

work  on  by  himself  in  isolation  and  difficulty.  The 
latter  was  possibly  the  more  trying  sacrifice  of  the  two. 
To  give  up  all  his  earthly  prospects  and  all  the  sweet- 
ness of  home  life,  in  order  to  work  for  the  spread  of 
the  Gospel  side  by  side  with  St.  Paul,  was  no  doubt  a 
sacrifice  that  must  have  cost  those  who  made  it  a  great 
deal.  But  it  had  its  attractive  side.  Quite  inde- 
pendently of  the  beauty  and  majesty  of  the  cause  itself, 
there  was  the  delight  of  being  associated  with  a  leader 
so  able,  so  sagacious,  so  invigorating,  and  so  affectionate 
as  the  Apostle  who  "  became  all  things  to  all  men  that 
he  might  by  all  means  save  some."  Hard  work 
became  light,  and  difficulties  became  smooth,  under  the 
inspiriting  sympathy  of  such  a  colleague.  But  it  was 
quite  another  thing  to  have  given  up  everything  for  the 
sake  of  such  companionship  and  support,  or  at  least  in 
the  full  expectation  of  enjoying  it,  and  then  to  have  to 
undergo  the  hard  work  and  confront  the  difficulties 
without  it.  The  new  dispensation  in  this  respect 
repeats  the  old.  Elisha  leaves  his  home  and  his  in- 
heritance to  follow  Elijah,  and  then  Elijah  is  taken  from 
him.  Timothy  and  Titus  leave  their  homes  and  posses- 
sions to  follow  St.  Paul,  and  then  St.  Paul  sends  them 
away  from  him.  And  to  this  arrangement  they  con- 
sented, Timothy  (as  we  know)  with  tears,  Titus  (we 
may  be  sure)  with  much  regret.  And  what  it  cost  the 
loving  Apostle  thus  to  part  with  them  and  to  pain  them 
we  see  from  the  tone  of  affectionate  longing  which 
pervades  these  letters. 

The  example  set  by  both  master  and  disciples  is  one 
which  Christians,  and  especially  Christian  ministers, 
must  from  time  to  time  need.  Christ  sent  forth  both 
the  Twelve  and  the  Seventy  "  two  and  two  " ;  and  what 
is  true  of  mankind  generally  is  true  also  of  the  ministry 


i.  1,4-]  HIS  LIFE  AND   CHARACTER,  211 

— "  It  is  not  good  for  man  to  be  alone."  But  cases 
often  arise  in  which  not  more  than  one  man  can  be 
spared  for  each  post ;  and  then  those  who  have  been 
all  in  all  to  one  another,  in  sympathy  and  counsel  and 
co-operation,  have  to  part.  And  it  is  one  of  the 
greatest  sacrifices  that  can  be  required  of  them.  Paul 
and  Timothy  and  Titus  were  willing  to  make  this 
sacrifice  ;  and  it  is  one  which  Christ's  servants  through- 
out all  ages  are  called  upon  at  times  to  make.  Many 
men  are  willing  to  face,  especially  in  a  good  cause, 
what  is  repulsive  to  them,  if  they  have  the  company  of 
others  in  the  trial,  especially  if  they  have  the  presence 
and  support  of  those  whose  presence  is  in  itself  a 
refreshment,  and  their  support  a  redoubling  of  strength. 
But  to  enter  upon  a  long  and  trying  task  with  the  full 
expectation  of  such  advantages,  and  then  to  be  called 
upon  to  surrender  them, — this  is,  indeed,  a  trial  which 
might  well  make  the  weak-hearted  turn  back.  But 
their  devotion  to  their  Lord's  work,  and  their  confidence 
in  His  sustaining  power,  enabled  the  Apostle  and  his 
two  chief  disciples  to  make  the  venture;  and  the 
marvellous  success  of  the  Church  in  the  age  which 
immediately  succeeded  them,  shows  how  their  sacrifice 
was  blessed.  And  we  may  be  sure  that  even  in  this 
world  they  had  their  reward.  "  Verily  I  say  unto  you, 
There  is  no  man  that  hath  left  house,  or  brethren,  or 
sisters,  or  mother,  or  father,  or  children,  or  lands,  for 
My  sake,  and  for  the  Gospel's  sake,  but  he  shall 
receive  a  hundredfold  now  in  this  time,  houses,  and 
brethren,  and  sisters,  and  mothers,  and  children,  and 
lands,  with  persecutions;  and  in  the  world  to  come 
eternal  life" 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE  CHURCH  IN  CRETE  AND  ITS  ORGANIZATION-^ 
THE  APOSTLES  DIRECTIONS  FOR  APPOINTING 
ELDERS. 

"For  this  cause  left  I  thee  in  Crete,  that  thou  shouldest  set  in 
order  the  things  that  were  wanting,  and  appoint  elders  in  every  city, 
as  I  gave  thee  charge ;  if  any  man  is  blameless,  the  husband  of  one 
wife,  having  children  that  believe,  who  are  not  accused  of  riot  or 
unruly.  For  the  bishop  must  be  blameless,  as  God's  steward." 
— Titus  i,  5 — 7. 

THIS  passage  tells  us  a  great  deal  about  the  cir- 
cumstances which  led  to  the  writing  of  the  letter. 
They  have  been  touched  upon  in  the  previous  chapter, 
but  may  be  treated  more  comprehensively  here. 

It  is  quite  evident :  (i)  that  the  Gospel  had  been 
estabHshed  in  Crete  for  a  considerable  time  when  St. 
Paul  wrote  this  to  his  delegate,  Titus ;  (2)  that  during 
the  Apostle's  stay  in  the  island  he  had  been  unable  to 
complete  the  work  which  he  had  in  view  with  regard 
to  the  full  establishment  of  the  Church  there ;  and  (3) 
that  one  of  the  chief  things  which  remained  undone, 
and  which  St.  Paul  had  been  compelled  to  leave  to 
Titus  to  accomplish,  was  a  properly  organized  ministry. 
There  was  a  large  and  scattered  flock ;  but  for  the 
most  part  it  was  without  shepherds. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  the  Gospel  of  Christ  was 
at  least  known,  if  not  by  any  one  believed,  in  Crete 
before   St.   Paul   visited  the  islands.      Cretans  were 


1 5-7]  THE  CHURCH  IN  CRETE,  113 

among  those  who  heard  the  miraculous  preaching  of 
the  Apostles  on  the  day  of  Pentecost ;  and  some  of 
these  may  have  returned  to  their  country,  if  not 
converts  to  Christianity,  at  any  rate  full  of  what  they 
had  seen  and  heard  of  "  the  mighty  works  of  God," 
as  shown  forth  in  the  words  spoken  on  that  day,  and 
in  their  consequences.  Certainly  there  were  many 
Jews  in  the  island  ;  and  these,  though  often  the  bitterest 
opponents  of  the  Gospel,  were  nevertheless  the  readiest 
and  best  converts,  when  they  did  not  oppose;  for 
they  already  knew  and  worshipped  the  true  God,  and 
they  were  acquainted  with  the  prophecies  respecting 
the  Messiah.  We  may  therefore  conclude  that  the 
way  was  already  prepared  for  the  preaching  of  Christ, 
even  if  He  as  yet  had  no  worshippers  in  Crete,  before 
St.  Paul  began  to  teach  there. 

There  are  three  things  which  tend  to  show  that 
Christianity  had  been  spreading  in  Crete  for  at  least 
some  years  when  the  Apostle  wrote  this  letter  to  Titus. 
First,  the  latter  is  charged  to  "  appoint  elders  in  every 
cttyj^  or  "city  by  city,"  as  we  might  render  the  original 
expression  (jcara  iroXiv).  This  implies  that  among  the 
multitude  of  cities,  for  which  Crete  even  in  Homer's 
day  had  been  famous,  not  a  few  had  a  Christian 
congregation  in  need  of  supervision ;  and  it  is  not 
improbable  that  the  congregation  in  some  cases  was  a 
large  one.  For  the  interpretation  is  certainly  an  un- 
tenable one  which  forces  into  the  Apostle's  words  a 
restriction  which  they  do  not  contain,  that  each  city 
is  to  have  just  one  presbyter  and  no  more.  St.  Paul 
tells  Titus  to  take  care  that  no  city  is  left  without  a 
presbyter.  Each  Christian  community  is  to  have  its 
proper  ministry  ;  it  is  not  to  be  left  to  its  own  guidance. 
But  how  many  elders  each  congregation  is  to  have,  is 


214  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

a  point  to  be  decided  by  Titus  according  to  the  principles 
laid  down  for  him  by  St.  Paul.  For  we  must  not  limit 
the  "  as  I  gave  thee  charge  "  to  the  mere  fact  of  appoint- 
ing elders.  The  Apostle  had  told  him,  not  merely 
that  elders  must  be  appointed,  but  that  they  must  be 
appointed  in  a  particular  way,  and  according  to  a 
prescribed  system.  The  passage,  therefore,  tells  us 
that  there  were  a  good  many  cities  in  which  there  were 
Christian  congregations,  and  leaves  us  quite  free  to 
believe  that  some  of  these  congregations  were  large 
enough  to  require  several  elders  to  minister  to  them 
and  govern  them.  Secondly,  the  kind  of  person  to  be 
selected  as  overseer  seems  to  imply  that  Christianity 
has  been  established  for  a  considerable  time  among  the 
Cretans.  The  "elder"  or  "  bishop  "  (for  in  this  passage, 
at  any  rate,  the  two  names  indicate  one  and  the  same 
officer)  is  to  be  the  father  of  a  family,  with  children 
who  are  believers  and  orderly  persons. 

The  injunction  implies  that  there  are  cases  in  which 
the  father  is  a  good  Christian,  but  he  has  not  succeeded 
in  making  his  children  good  Christians.  Either  they 
have  not  become  believers  at  all ;  or,  although  nominal 
Christians,  they  do  not  conduct  themselves  as  such. 
They  are  profligate,  riotous,  and  disobedient.  This 
implies  that  the  children  are  old  enough  to  think  for 
themselves  and  reject  the  Gospel  in  spite  of  their 
parent's  conversion  ;  or  that  they  are  old  enough  to 
rebel  against  its  authority.  And  one  does  not  use  such 
strong  words  as  "  profligacy  "  or  "  riotous  living  "  of 
quite  young  children.  The  prodigal  son,  of  whom  the 
same  expression  is  used,  was  no  mere  child.  Cases 
of  this  kind,  therefore,  in  which  the  father  had  been 
converted  to  Christianity,  but  had  been  unable  to  make 
the  influences  of  Christianity  tell  upon  his  own  children, 


i  5-7.  THE   CHURCH  IN  CRETE.  215 

were  common  enough  to  make  it  worth  St.  Paul's  while 
to  give  injunctions  about  them.  And  this  implies  a 
condition  of  things  in  which  Christianity  was  no  newly 
planted  religion.  The  injunctions  are  intelligible 
enough.  Such  fathers  are  not  to  be  selected  by  Titus 
as  elders.  A  man  who  has  so  conspicuously  failed  in 
bringing  his  own  household  into  harmony  with  the 
Gospel,  is  not  the  man  to  be  promoted  to  rule  the 
household  of  the  Church.  Even  if  his  failure  is  his 
misfortune  rather  than  his  fault,  the  condition  of  his 
own  family  cannot  fail  to  be  a  grave  impediment  to 
his  usefulness  as  an  overseer  of  the  congregation.* 
Thirdly,  there  is  the  fact  that  heresies  already  exist 
among  the  Cretan  Christians.  Titus,  like  Timothy, 
has  to  contend  with  teaching  of  a  seriously  erroneous 
kind.  From  this  also  we  infer  that  the  faith  has  long 
since  been  introduced  into  the  island.  The  misbeliefs 
of  the  newly  converted  would  be  spoken  of  in  far  gentler 
terms.  They  are  errors  of  ignorance,  which  will 
disappear  as  fuller  instruction  in  the  truth  is  received. 
They  are  not  erroneous  doctrines  held  and  propagated 
in  opposition  to  the  truth.  These  latter  require  time 
for  their  development.  From  all  these  considerations, 
therefore,  we  conclude  that  St.  Paul  is  writing  to  Titus 
as  his  delegate  in  a  country  in  which  the  Gospel  is  no 
new  thing.  We  are  not  to  suppose  that  the  Apostle 
left  Titus  in  charge  of  Christians  who  had  been  con- 
verted a  very  short  time  before  to  the  faith. 

The  incompleteness  of  the  Apostle's  own  work  in  the 

*  It  is  worth  while  here  to  repeat  the  caution  that  the  Apostle's 
language  by  no  means  implies  that  the  "  elder  "  or  "bishop"  must  be 
a  married  man  with  children.  But  it  implies  that  he  will  generally 
be  such ;  and  in  appointing  him,  the  character  of  his  family  must  be 
carefully  considered. 


2i6  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 


island  is  spoken  of  in  plain  terms.  Even  in  Churches 
in  which  he  was  able  to  remain  for  two  or  three  years, 
he  was  obliged  to  leave  very  much  unfinished  ;  and  we 
need  not  be  surprised  that  such  was  the  case  in  Crete, 
where  he  can  hardly  have  stayed  so  long.  It  was  this 
incompleteness  in  all  his  work,  a  defect  quite  unavoid- 
able in  work  of  such  magnitude,  that  weighed  so 
heavily  upon  the  Apostle's  mind.  It  was  "  that  which 
pressed  upon  him  daily, — anxiety  for  all  the  Churches." 
There  was  so  much  that  had  never  been  done  at  all ; 
so  much  that  required  to  be  secured  and  established  ; 
so  much  that  already  needed  correction.  And  while  he 
was  attending  to  the  wants  of  one  Church,  another  not 
less  important,  not  less  dear  to  him,  was  equally  in 
need  of  his  help  and  guidance.  And  here  was  the 
comfort  of  having  such  disciples  as  Timothy  and  Titus, 
who,  like  true  friends,  could  be  indeed  a  "second  self" 
to  him.  They  could  be  carrying  on  his  work  in  places 
where  he  himself  could  not  be.  And  thus  there  was 
no  small  consolation  for  the  sorrow  of  parting  from 
them  and  the  loss  of  their  helpful  presence.  They 
could  be  still  more  helpful  elsewhere.  "  For  this  cause 
left  I  thee  in  Crete,  that  thou  shouldest  set  in  order 
the  things  that  were  wanting." 

There  were  many  things  that  were  wanting  in  Crete ; 
but  one  of  the  chief  things  which  pressed  upon  the 
Apostle's  mind  was  the  lack  of  a  properly  organized 
ministry,  without  which  everything  must  soon  fall  into 
confusion  and  decay.  Hence,  as  soon  as  he  has 
concluded  his  salutation,  the  fulness  and  solemnity  of 
which  is  one  of  the  many  evidences  of  the  genuineness 
of  the  letter,  he  at  once  repeats  to  Titus  the  charge 
which  he  had  previously  given  to  him  by  word  of 
mouth  respecting  this  pressing   need.     A  due  supply 


i.  5-7.]  THE   CHURCH  IN  CRETE.  217 

of  elders  or  overseers  is  of  the  first  importance  for 
^'  setting  in  order "  those  things  which  at  present  are 
in  so  unsatisfactory  a  state. 

There  are  several  points  of  interest  in  connexion 
with  St.  Paul's  directions  to  Titus  respecting  this  need 
and  the  best  way  of  meeting  it. 

First.  It  is  Titus  himself  who  is  to  appoint  these 
elders  throughout  the  cities  in  which  congregations 
exist.  It  is  not  the  congregations  that  are  to  elect 
the  overseerS;  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Apostle's 
delegate  ;  still  less  that  he  is  to  ordain  any  one  whom 
they  may  elect.  The  full  responsibility  of  each  appoint- 
ment rests  with  him.  Anything  like  popular  election 
of  the  ministers  is  not  only  not  suggested,  it  is  by 
implication  entirely  excluded.  But,  secondly,  in  making 
each  appointment  Titus  is  to  consider  the  congregation. 
He  is  to  look  carefully  to  the  reputation  which  the  man 
of  his  choice  bears  among  his  fellow-Christians  : — "  if 
any  man  is  blameless  ,  .  .  having  children  who  are  not 
accused  of  riot  ....  For  the  bishop  must  be  blameless^ 
A  man  in  whom  the  congregation  have  no  confidence, 
because  of  the  bad  repute  which  attaches  to  himself 
or  his  family,  is  not  to  be  appointed.  In  this  way  the 
congregation  have  an  indirect  veto;  for  the  man  to 
whom  they  cannot  give  a  good  character  may  not  be 
taken  to  be  set  over  them.  Thirdly,  the  appointment 
of  Church  officers  is  regarded  as  imperative :  it  is  on 
no  account  to  be  omitted.  And  it  is  not  merely  an 
arrangement  that  is  as  a  rule  desirable :  it  is  to  be 
universal.  Titus  is  to  '^  appoint  elders  in  every  city." 
He  is  to  go  through  the  congregations  ''city  by  city," 
and  take  care  that  each  has  its  elder  or  body  of  elders. 
Fourthly,  as  the  name  itself  indicates,  these  elders  are 
to  be  taken  from  the  older  men  among  the'  believers. 


2i8  THE  EPISTLE    TO   TJTV.S, 

As  a  rule  they  are  to  be  heads  of  famiUes,  who  have 
had  experience  of  hfe  in  its  manifold  relations,  and 
especially  who  have  had  experience  of  ruling  a  Christian 
household.  That  will  be  some  guarantee  for  their 
capacity  for  ruling  a  Christian  congregation.  Lastly, 
it  must  be  remembered  that  they  are  not  merely 
delegates,  either  of  Titus,  or  of  the  congregation.  The 
essence  of  their  authority  is  not  that  they  are  the 
representatives  of  the  body  of  Christian  men  and 
women  over  whom  they  are  placed.  It  has  a  far 
higher  origin.  They  are  "  God's  stewards."  It  is  His 
household  that  they  direct  and  administer,  and  it  is 
from  Him  that  their  powers  are  derived.  They  are 
His  ministers,  solemnly  appointed  to  act  in  His  Name. 
It  is  on  His  behalf  that  they  have  to  speak,  as  His 
agents  and  ambassadors,  labouring  to  advance  the 
interests  of  His  kingdom.  They  are  "  stewards  of  His 
mysteries,"  bringing  out  of  what  is  committed  to  them 
"  things  new  and  old."  As  God's  agents  they  have 
a  work  to  do  among  their  fellow-men,  through  them- 
selves, for  Him.  As  God's  ambassadors  they  have 
a  message  to  deliver,  good  tidings  to  proclaim,  ever 
the  same,  and  yet  ever  new.  As  *^  God's  stewards  " 
they  have  treasures  to  guard  with  reverent  care, 
treasures  to  augment  by  diligent  cultivation,  treasures 
to  distribute  with  prudent  liberality.  There  is  the 
flock,  sorely  needing,  but  it  may  be  not  greatly  craving, 
God's  spiritual  gifts.  The  longing  has  to  be  awakened  : 
the  longing,  when  awakened,  has  to  be  cherished  and 
directed  :  the  gifts  which  will  satisfy  it  have  to  be 
dispensed.  There  is  a  demand  ;  and  there  is  a  supply  ; 
a  human  demand  and  a  Divine  supply.  It  is  the 
business  of  God's  stewards  to  see  that  the  one  meets 
the  other. 


i.S-7.]  THE   CHURCH  IN  CRETE.  219 

"  God's  steward "  is  the  key  to  all  that  follows 
respecting  the  qualities  to  be  looked  for  in  an  elder 
or  overseer  of  the  Church :  and,  as  the  order  of  the 
words  in  the  Greek  shows,  the  emphasis  is  on  ''God's" 
rather  than  on  "steward."  The  point  accentuated  is, 
not  that  in  the  Church  as  in  his  own  home  he  has 
a  household  to  administer,  but  that  the  household  to 
which  he  has  to  minister  is  God's.  That  being  so,  he 
"  as  God's  steward  "  must  prove  himself  worthy  of  the 
commission  which  he  holds  :  "  not  self-willed,  not  soon 
angry,  no  brawler,  no  striker,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre ; 
but  given  to  hospitality,  a  lover  of  good,  sober-minded, 
just,  holy,  temperate ;  holding  to  the  faithful  word 
which  is  according  to  the  teaching,  that  he  may  be  able 
both  to  exhort  in  the  sound  doctrine,  and  to  convict 
the  gainsayers." 

Such  men,  wherever  he  can  find  them, — and  "//"any 
man  is  blameless"  is  not  meant  to  hint  that  among 
Cretans  it  may  be  impossible  to  find  such, — Titus  is 
to  "  appoint  "  as  elders  in  every  city.  In  the  A.V.  the 
phrase  runs  "  ordain  elders  in  every  city."  As  we 
have  seen  already  (Chap.  V.),  there  are  several  passages 
in  v^rhich  the  Revisers  have  changed  "  ordain "  into 
"appoint."  Thus  in  Mark  iii.  14,  "He  ordained 
twelve "  becomes  "  He  appointed  twelve."  In  John 
XV.  16,  "  I  have  chosen  you  and  ordained  you  "  becomes, 
"  I  chose  you  and  appointed  you."  In  i  Tim.  ii.  7, 
"  Whereunto  I  am  ordained  a  preacher,  and  an  apostle  " 
becomes  "whereunto  I  was  appointed  a  preacher  and 
an  apostle."  In  Heb.  v.  I,  and  viii.  3,  "Every  high 
priest  is  ordained "  becomes  "  every  high  priest  is 
appointed."  In  these  passages  three  different  Greek 
words  (TToiico,  rlOrj/jLL,  KadiaTrjai)  are  used  in  the 
original ;  but  not  one  of  them  has  the  special  ecclesi- 


220  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

astical  meaning  which  we  so  frequently  associate 
with  the  word  "  ordain "  ;  not  one  of  them  imphes, 
as  '^  ordain  "  in  such  context  almost  of  necessity  impHes, 
a  rite  of  ordination,  a  special  ceremonial,  such  as  the 
laying  on  of  hands.  When  in  English  we  say,  **  He 
ordained  twelve,"  "  I  am  ordained  an  apostle,"  "  Every 
high  priest  is  ordained,"  the  mind  almost  inevitably 
thinks  of  ordination  in  the  common  sense  of  the  word ; 
and  this  is  foisting  upon  the  language  of  the  New 
Testament  a  meaning  which  the  words  there  used  do 
not  rightly  bear.  They  all  three  of  them  refer  to  the 
appointment  to  the  office,  and  not  to  rite  or  ceremony 
by  which  the  person  appointed  is  admitted  to  the  office. 
The  Revisers,  therefore,  have  done  wisely  in  banishing 
from  all  such  texts  a  word  which  to  English  readers 
cannot  fail  to  suggest  ideas  which  are  not  contained 
at  all  in  the  original  Greek.  If  we  ask  in  what  way 
Titus  admitted  the  men  whom  he  selected  to  serve  as 
presbyters  to  their  office,  the  answer  is  scarcely  a 
doubtful  one.  Almost  certainly  he  would  admit  them, 
as  Timothy  himself  was  admitted,  and  as  he  is  in- 
structed to  admit  others,  by  the  laying  on  of  hands. 
But  this  is  neither  expressed  nor  implied  in  the  injunc- 
tion to  *' appoint  elders  in  every  city."  The  appoint- 
ment is  one  thing,  the  ordination  another ;  and  even 
in  cases  in  which  we  are  sure  that  the  appointment 
involved  ordination,  we  are  not  justified  in  saying 
'•ordain"  where  the  Greek  says  "appoint."  The 
Greek  words  used  in  the  passages  quoted  might  equally 
well  be  used  of  the  appointment  of  a  magistrate  or  a 
steward.  And  as  we  should  avoid  speaking  of  ordaining 
a  magistrate  or  a  steward,  we  ought  to  avoid  using 
"  ordain  "  to  translate  words  which  would  be  thoroughly 
in  place  in  such  a  connexion.     The  Greek  words  for 


i.  5-7.J  THE   CHURCH  IN  CRETE.  221 

*'  ordain  "  and  "  ordination,"  in  the  sense  of  imposition 
of  hands  in  order  to  admit  to  an  ecclesiastical  office 
(X^cpoOeTel,  '^^eLpoOeaca),  do  not  occur  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment at  all. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  there  is  not  a  trace  here, 
any  more  than  there  is  in  the  similar  passage  in 
I  Timothy,  of  the  parallel  between  the  threefold  minis- 
try in  the  Old  Testament  and  a  threefold  ministry  in  the 
Christian  Church,  high-priest,  priests,  and  Levites  being 
compared  with  bishop,  presbyters,  and  deacons.  This 
parallel  was  a  favourite  one  and  it  was  made  early. 
The  fact  therefore  that  we  do  not  find  it  in  any  of 
these  Epistles,  nor  even  any  material  out  of  which  it 
could  be  constructed,  confirms  us  in  the  belief  that 
these  letters  belong  to  the  first  century  and  not  to  the 
second. 

In  giving  this  injunction  to  Titus,  St.  Paul  assumes 
that  his  disciple  and  delegate  is  as  free  as  he  himself 
is  from  all  feelings  of  jealousy,  or  envy.  "Art  thou 
jealous  for  my  sake  ?  would  God  that  all  the  Lord's 
people  were  prophets,"  is  the  spirit  in  which  these 
instructions  are  given,  and  no  doubt  were  accepted. 
There  is  no  grasping  after  power  in  the  great  Apostle 
of  the  Gentiles;  no  desire  to  keep  everything  in  his 
own  hands,  that  he  might  have  the  credit  of  all  that 
was  done.  So  long  as  Christ  is  rightly  preached,  so 
long  as  the  Lord's  work  is  faithfully  done,  he  cares 
not  who  wins  the  glory.  He  is  more  than  willing  that 
Timothy  and  Titus  should  share  in  his  work  and  its 
reward;  and  he  without  hesitation  applies  to  them  to 
admit  others  in  like  manner  to  share  with  them  in 
their  work  and  its  reward.  This  generous  willingness 
to  admit  others  to  co-operate  is  not  always  found, 
especially  in  men  of  strong  character  and  great  energy 


222  THE  EPISTLE   TO    TITUS. 

and  decision.  They  will  admit  subordinates  as  a 
necessary  evil  to  work  out  details,  because  they  can- 
not themselves  afford  time  for  all  these.  But  they 
object  to  anything  like  colleagues.  Whatever  of  any 
serious  importance  is  done  must  be  in  their  own  hands 
and  must  be  recognized  as  their  work.  There  is 
nothing  of  this  spirit  in  St.  Paul.  He  could  rejoice 
when  some  ''  preached  Christ  even  of  envy  and  strife," 
"  not  sincerely,  thinking  to  raise  up  affliction  for  him 
in  his  bonds."  He  rejoiced,  not  because  of  their  evil 
temper,  but  because  that  at  any  rate  Christ  was  preached. 
How  much  more,  therefore,  did  he  rejoice  when  Christ 
was  preached  "  of  good  will "  by  disciples  devoted  to 
himself  and  his  Master.  They  all  had  the  same  end 
in  view  ;  not  their  own  glory,  but  the  glory  of  God. 

And  this  is  the  end  which  all  Christian  ministers 
have  to  keep  in  view,  and  which  they  too  often  exchange 
for  ends  that  are  far  lower,  and  far  removed  (it  may 
be)  from  the  cause  with  which  we  choose  to  identify 
them.  And  as  time  goes  on,  and  we  look  less  and 
less  with  a  single  eye  at  the  will  of  God,  and  have 
less  and  less  of  the  single  purpose  of  seeking  His 
glory,  our  aims  become  narrower  and  our  ends  more 
selfish.  At  first  it  is  the  triumph  of  a  system,  then 
it  is  the  advancement  of  a  party.  Then  it  becomes  the 
propagation  of  our  own  views,  and  the  extension  of 
our  own  influence.  Until  at  last  we  find  ourselves 
working,  no  longer  for  God's  glory,  but  simply  for  our 
own.  While  professing  to  work  in  His  Name  and  for 
His  honour,  we  have  steadily  substituted  our  own  wills 
for  His. 

But  it  is  only  by  forgetting  ourselves  that  we  find 
ourselves;  only  by  losing  our  hfe  that  we  find  it. 
"  God's    steward "    must  be    ready  to  sink  every  per- 


i.  5-7-]  THE  CHURCH  IN  CRETE.  223 


sonal  interest  in  the  interests  of  the  great  Employer. 
He  has  nothing  of  his  own.  He  deals  with  his 
Master's  goods,  and  must  deal  with  them  in  his  Master's 
way.  He  who  labours  in  this  spirit  will  one  day  be 
rewarded  by  the  Divine  voice  of  welcome  :  ^*  Well  done, 
good  and  faithful  servant  :  thou  hast  been  faithful  over 
a  few  things ;  I  will  set  thee  over  many  things ;  enter 
thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord." 


CHAPTER  XX. 

CHRISTIANITY  AND  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE. 

"One  of  themselves,  a  prophet  of  their  own,  said,  Cretans  are 
always  liars,  evil  beasts,  idle  gluttons.  This  testimony  is  true.  For 
which  cause  reprove  them  sharply,  that  they  may  be  sound  in  the 
faith." — Titus  i.   I2,  13. 

THE  hexameter  verse  which  St.  Paul  here  cites 
from  the  Cretan  poet  Epimenides  is  one  of  three 
quotations  from  profane  literature  which  are  made  by 
St.  Paul.  Of  the  other  two,  one  occurs  in  i  Cor.  xv. 
33,  ^*  Evil  communications  corrupt  good  manners " ; 
and  the  other  in  the  Apostle's  speech  on  the  Areopagus 
at  Athens,  as  recorded  in  the  Acts  (xvii.  28) :  *'  For 
we  are  also  his  offspring."  They  cannot  be  relied 
upon  as  sufficient  to  prove  that  St.  Paul  was  well  read 
in  classical  literature,  any  more  than  the  quoting  of  a 
hackneyed  line  from  Shakespeare,  from  Byron,  and 
from  Tennyson,  would  prove  that  an  English  writer 
was  well  acquainted  with  English  literature.  It  may 
have  been  the  case  that  St.  Paul  knew  a  great  deal  of 
Greek  classical  literature,  but  these  three  quotations, 
from  Epimenides,  from  some  Greek  tragedian,  and  from 
Cleanthes  or  Aratus,  do  not  at  all  prove  the  point.  In 
all  three  cases  the  source  of  the  quotation  is  not  certain. 
In  the  one  before  us  the  Apostle  no  doubt  tells  us  that 
he  is  quoting  a  Cretan  "  prophet,"  and  therefore  quotes 
the  line  as  coming  from  Epimenides.     But  a  man  may 


1 12,  13.]  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE.  225 

know  that  "  Friends,  Romans,  countrymen,  lend  me 
your  ears "  is  Shakespeare,  without  having  read  a 
single  play.  And  we  are  quite  uncertain  whether  St. 
Paul  had  even  seen  the  poem  of  Epimenides  on  Oracles 
in  which  the  line  which  he  here  quotes  occurs.  The 
iambic  which  he  quotes  in  the  letter  to  the  Corinthians, 
although  originally  in  some  Greek  play  (perhaps  of  Eu- 
ripides or  Menander),  had  passed  into  a  proverb,  and 
proves  even  less  than  the  line  from  Epimenides  that 
St.  Paul  knew  the  work  in  which  it  occurred.  The 
hal  -line  which  is  given  in  his  speech  at  Athens,  stating 
the  Divine  parentage  of  mankind,  may  have  come  from 
a  variety  of  sources  :  but  it  is  not  improbable  that  the 
Apostle  had  read  it  in  the  Phcenomena  of  Aratus,  in 
which  it  occurs  in  the  form  in  which  it  is  reproduced 
in  the  Acts.  This  astronomical  poem  was  popular  in 
St.  Paul's  day,  and  he  was  the  more  likely  to  have 
come  across  it,  as  Aratus  is  said  to  have  been  a  native 
of  Tarsus,  or  at  any  rate  of  Cihcia.  But  even  when 
we  have  admitted  that  the  Apostle  had  read  the  Phceno- 
mena of  Aratus  or  Cleanthes'  Hymn  to  Zeus,  we  have 
not  made  much  way  towards  proving  that  he  was  well 
read  in  Greek  literature.  Indeed  the  contrary  has 
been  argued  from  the  fact  that,  according  to  the  read- 
ing of  the  best  authorities,  the  iambic  line  in  the 
Corinthians  is  quoted  in  such  a  way  as  to  spoil  the 
scanning ;  which  would  seem  to  show  that  St.  Paul 
was  not  familiar  with  the  iambic  metre.*  If  that  was 
the  case,  he  can  scarcely  have  read  even  a  single  Greek 
play. 

But    the   question  is  not  one  of  great  irrportance, 
although  doubtless  of  some  interest.     We  do  not  need 

*  XPWT^  oytwXiai  instead  of  XPV<^^'  ofiiXtai. 

IS 


226  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

this  evidence  to  prove  that  the  Apostle  was  a  person, 
not  only  of  great  energy  and  ability,  but  of  culture. 
There  are  passages  in  his  writings,  such  as  chapters 
xiii.  and  xv.  in  I  Corinthians,  which  are  equal  for 
beauty  and  eloquence  to  anything  in  Hterature.  Even 
among  inspired  writers  few  have  known  better  ti.an  St. 
Paul  how  to  clothe  lofty  thoughts  in  noble  language. 
And  of  his  general  acquaintance  with  the  moral  philo- 
sophy of  his  age,  especially  of  the  Stoic  school,  which 
was  very  influential  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Tarsus, 
there  can  be  no  doubt.  Just  as  St.  John  laid  the 
thoughts  and  language  of  Alexandrian  philosophy  under 
contribution,  and  gave  them  fuller  force  and  meaning 
to  express  the  dogmatic  truths  of  the  Gospel,  so  St. 
Paul  laid  the  thoughts  and  language  of  Stoicism  under 
contribution,  and  transfigured  them  to  express  the 
moral  teaching  of  the  Gospel.  Cleanthes  or  Aratus, 
from  one  or  both  of  whom  one  of  the  three  quotations 
comes  (and  St.  Paul  seems  to  know  both  sources,  for 
he  says  *'as  certain  even  of  your  ov/n  poets  have  said"), 
were  both  of  them  Stoics  :  and  the  speech  in  which  the 
quotation  occurs,  short  as  it  is  in  the  Acts,  abounds  in 
parallels  to  the  teaching  of  St.  Paul's  Stoic  contem- 
porary Seneca.  If  St.  Paul  tells  us  that  "  the  God  that 
made  the  world  and  all  things  therein  .  .  .  dwelleth 
not  in  temples  made  with  hands,"  Seneca  teaches  that 
"  temples  must  not  be  built  to  God  of  stones  piled  on 
high  :  He  must  be  consecrated  in  the  heart  of  man." 
While  St.  Paul  reminds  us  that  God  "is  not  far  from 
each  one  of  us,"  Seneca  says  ^'  God  is  near  thee :  He 
is  with  thee;  He  is  within."  Again,  St.  Paul  warns 
his  hearers  that  "  we  ought  not  to  think  that  the  God- 
head is  like  unto  gold,  or  silver,  or  stone,  graven  by 
art  and  device  of  man " ;  and  Seneca  declares  '*  Thou 


i.  12,  13.]  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE.  227 

shalt  not  form  Him  of  silver  and  gold  :  a  true  likeness 
of  God  cannot  be  moulded  of  this  material."  * 

But  the  quotations  are  of  other  interest  than  their 
bearing  upon  the  question  as  to  the  Greek  elements  in 
the  education  and  teaching  of  St.  Paul.  They  have  a 
bearing  also  on  the  question  of  Christian  use  of  profane 
authors^  and  on  the  duty  of  self-culture  in  general. 

The  leading  teachers  of  the  early  Church  differed 
vv^idely  in  their  estimate  of  the  value  of  heathen  litera- 
ture,  and  especially  of  heathen  philosophy.  On  the 
whole,  with  some  considerable  exceptions,  the  Greek 
Fathers  valued  it  highly,  as  containing  precious 
elements  of  truth,  which  were  partly  the  result  of 
direct  inspiration,  partly  echoes  of  the  Old  Testament. 
The  Latin  Fathers,  on  the  other  hand,  for  the  most 
part  treated  all  pagan  teaching  with  suspicion  and 
contempt.  It  was  in  no  sense  useful.  It  was  utterly 
false,  and  simply  stood  in  the  way  of  the  truth.  It 
was  rubbish,  which  must  be  swept  on  one  side  in 
order  to  make  room  for  the  Gospel.  Tertullian  thinks 
that  heathen  philosophers  are  "  blockheads  when  they 
knock  at  the  doors  of  truth,"  and  that  "  they  have  con- 
tributed nothing  whatever  that  a  Christian  can  accept." 
Arnobius  and  Lactantius  write  in  a  similar  strain  of 
contemptuous  disapproval.  Tertullian  thinks  it  out  of 
the  question  that  a  right-minded  Christian  should  teach 
in  pagan  schools.  But  even  he  shrinks  from  telling 
Christian  parents  that  they  must  allow  their  children 
to  remain  uneducated  rather  than  send  them  to  such 
schools.  The  policy  of  permitting  Christian  children 
to  attend  heathen  schools,  while  forbidding  Christian 
adults  from  teaching  in  them,  appears  singularly  un- 

*  Lightfcot  on  "  Seneca  and  St.  Paul,"  in  Philippians,  pp.  288,  300. 


228  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

reasonable.  Every  Christian  teacher  in  a  school 
rendered  that  school  less  objectionable  for  Christian 
children.  But  Tertullian  urges  that  one  who  teaches 
pagan  literature  seems  to  give  his  sanction  to  it :  one 
who  merely  learns  it  does  nothing  of  the  kind.  The 
young  must  be  educated  :  adults  need  not  become 
school-masters.  One  can  plead  necessity  in  the  one 
case  ;  not  in  the  other  {De  Idol.^  x).  But  the  necessity 
of  sending  a  child  to  a  pagan  school,  because  otherwise 
it  could  not  be  properly  educated,  did  not  settle  the 
question  whether  it  was  prudent,  or  even  right,  for  a 
Christian  in  afterlife  to  study  pagan  literature  ;  and  it 
required  the  thought  and  experience  of  several  centuries 
to  arrive  at  anything  like  a  consensus  of  opinion  and 
practice  on  the  subject.  But  during  the  first  four  or 
five  centuries  the  more  liberal  view,  even  in  the  West, 
on  the  whole  prevailed.  From  Irenaeus,  Tatian,  and 
Hermias,  among  Greek  writers,  and  from  various  Latin 
Fathers,  disapproving  opinions  proceeded.  But  the 
influence  of  Clement  of  Alexandria  and  Origen  in  the 
East,  and  of  Augustine  and  Jerome  in  the  West,  was 
too  strong  for  such  opinions.  Clement  puts  it  on  the 
bread  ground  that  all  wisdom  is  a  Divine  gift ;  and 
maintains  that  the  philosophy  of  the  Greeks,  limited 
and  particular  as  it  is,  contains  the  rudiments  of  that 
really  perfect  knowledge,  which  is  beyond  this  world." 
Origen,  in  rebutting  the  reproach  of  Celsus,  that  the 
Gospel  repelled  the  educated  and  gave  a  welcome  only 
to  the  ignorant,  quotes  the  Epistle  to  Titus,  pointing 
out  that  ''  Paul,  in  describing  what  kind  of  man  the 
bishop  ought  to  be,  lays  down  as  a  qualification  that  he 
must  be  a  teacher,  saying  that  he  ought  to  be  able  to 
convince  the  gainsayers,  that  by  the  wisdom  which  is 
in  him  he  may  stop  the  mouths  of  foolish  talkers  and 


i.  12,  13.]  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE.  229 

deceivers."  The  Gospel  gives  a  welcome  to  the 
learned  and  unlearned  alike :  to  the  learned^  that  they 
may  become  teachers ;  to  the  unlearned,  not  because  it 
prefers  such,  but  because  it  wishes  to  instruct  them. 
And  he  points  out  that  in  enumerating  the  gifts  of  the 
Spirit  St.  Paul  places  wisdom  and  knowledge  before 
faith,  gifts  of  healing,  and  miracles  (i  Cor.  xii.  8 — lo). 
But  Origen  does  not  point  out  that  St.  Paul  himself 
makes  use  of  heathen  literature  ;  although  immediately 
before  dealing  with  the  accusation  of  Celsus,  that 
Christians  hate  culture  and  promote  ignorance,  he 
quotes  from  Callimachus  half  of  the  saying  of  Epi- 
menides,  "  Cretans  are  alway  liars"  {Con.  Cels.y  III.  xliii). 
What  Origen* s  own  practice  was  w^e  learn  from  the 
Panegyric  of  his  enthusiastic  pupil,  Gregory  Thauma- 
turgus  (xiii.). 

With  the  exception  of  atheistic  philosophy,  which 
was  not  worth  the  risk,  Origen  encouraged  his  scholars 
to  study  everything;  and  he  gave  them  a  regular 
course  of  dialectics,  physics,  and  moral  philosophy,  as 
a  preparation  for  theology.  Augustine,  who  ascribes 
his  first  conversion  from  a  vicious  life  to  the  Hortensius 
of  Cicero  {Conf.,  III.  iv.  i),  was  not  likely  to  take  an 
extreme  line  in  condemning  classical  literature,  from 
which  he  himself  frequently  quotes.  Of  Cicero's 
Hortensius  he  says,  "  This  book  in  truth  changed  my 
affections,  and  turned  my  prayers  to  Thyself,  O  Lord, 
and  made  me  have  other  hopes  and  desires."  He 
quotes,  among  other  classical  authors,  not  only  Virgil, 
Livy,  Lucan,  Sallust,  Horace,  Pliny  and  Quintillian, 
but  Terence,  Persius,  and  Juvenal,  and  of  the  last 
from  those  Satires  which  are  sometimes  omitted  by 
editors  on  account  of  their  grossness.  In  his  treatise 
Qn  Christian  Doctrine  (II.   xl.),   he  contends  that  we 


230  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

must  not  shrink  from  making  use  of  all  that  is  good 
and  true  in  heathen  writings  and  institutions.  We 
must  ^'  spoil  the  Egyptians."  The  writings  of  his 
instructor  Ambrose  show  that  he  also  was  well 
acquainted  with  the  best  Latin  classies.  In  Jerome  we 
have  what  may  be  called  an  essay  on  the  subject. 
Ruffinus  had  suggested  to  Magnus,  a  Roman  rhetorician, 
that  he  should  ask  Jerome  why  he  filled  his  writings 
with  so  many  allusions  and  quotations  taken  from 
pagan  literature,  and  Jerome  in  reply,  after  quoting  the 
opening  verses  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  refers  him  to 
the  example  of  St.  Paul  in  the  Epistles  to  Titus  and 
the  Corinthians,  and  in  the  speech  in  the  Acts.  Then 
he  points  to  Cyprian,  Origen,  Eusebius,  and  Apol- 
linaris :  ^'  read  them,  and  you  will  find  that  in  com- 
parison with  them  we  have  little  skill  (in  quotation)." 
Besides  these  he  appeals  to  the  examples,  among  Greek 
writers,  of  Quadratus,  Justin  Martyr,  Dionysius, 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  Basil,  Gregory  Nazianzen, 
etc.  ;  and  among  Latins,  Tertullian,  Minucius  Felix, 
Arnobius,  Hilary,  and  Juvencus.  And  he  points  out 
that  quotations  from  profane  authors  occur  in  nearly  all 
the  works  of  these  writers,  and  not  merely  in  those 
which  are  addressed  to  heathen.  But  while  Jerome 
defends  the  study  of  classical  authors  as  a  necessary 
part  of  education,  he  severely  condemns  those  clergy 
who  amused  themselves  with  such  writers  as  Plautus 
(of  whom  he  himself  had  been  very  fond),  Terence,  and 
Catullus,  when  they  ought  to  have  been  studying  the 
Scriptures.  Later  in  life  his  views  appear  to  have 
become  more  rigid  ;  and  we  find  him  rejoicing  that  the 
works  of  Plato  and  Aristotle  are  becoming  neglected. 

It  was   the  short  reign  of  Julian,   commonly  called 
"the   Apostate"  (a.d.  361 — 363),  which  had  brought 


i.  12,  13.]  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE.  231 

the  question  very  much  to  the  front.  His  policy  and 
legislation  probably  influenced  Augustine  and  Jerome 
in  taking  a  more  liberal  line  in  the  matter,  in  spite  of 
Latin  dislike  of  Greek  philosophy  and  their  own  ascetic 
tendencies.  Julian,  jealous  of  the  growing  influence  of 
Christian  teachers,  tried  to  prevent  them  from  lecturing 
on  classical  authors.  From  this  he  hoped  to  gain  two 
advantages,  (i)  Secular  education  would  to  a  large 
extent  be  taken  out  of  Christian  hands.  (2)  The 
Christian  teachers  themselves  would  become  less  well 
educated,  and  less  able  to  contend  with  heathen 
controversialists.  He  sarcastically  pointed  out  the 
inconvenience  of  a  teacher  expounding  Homer  and 
denouncing  Homer's  gods :  Christians  had  better 
confine  themselves  to  "  expounding  Matthew  and  Luke 
in  the  Churches  of  the  Galileans,"  and  leave  the 
interpretation  of  the  masterpieces  of  antiquity  to  others. 
And  he  seems  not  to  have  contented  himself  with 
cynical  advice,  but  to  have  passed  a  law  that  no 
Christian  was  to  teach  in  the  public  schools.  This  law 
was  at  once  cancelled  by  his  successor  Valentinian ; 
but  it  provoked  a  strong  feeling  of  resentment,  and 
stirred  up  Christians  to  recognize  and  hold  fast  the 
advantages  of  a  classical  education. 

But  while  the  influence  of  the  first  three  of  the  four 
great  Latin  Fathers  was  in  favour  of  a  wise  use  of  the 
products  of  pagan  genius,  the  influence  of  the  last  of 
the  four  was  disastrously  in  the  opposite  direction. 

In  the  period  between  Jerome  and  Gregory  the 
Great  two  facts  had  had  a  calamitous  effect  upon  the 
cause  of  liberal  education,  (i)  The  inroads  of  the 
barbarians  almost  destroyed  the  imperial  schools  in 
Gaul  and  Italy.  (2)  The  miserable  controversies 
about  Origen  produced  an  uneasy  suspicion  that  secular 


232  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

study  was  prejudical  to  orthodoxy.  It  is  perhaps  to 
this  latter  influence  that  we  may  attribute  two  ecclesi- 
astical canons  of  unknown  date  and  origin.  In  the 
Apostolical  Constitutions  (I.  vi.)  we  read,  "Abstain  from 
all  heathen  books.  For  what  hast  thou  to  do  with  such 
foreign  discourses,  or  laws,  or  false  prophets,  which 
subvert  the  faith  of  the  unstable  ?  For  what  defect 
dost  thou  find  in  the  law  of  God,  that  thou  shouldest 
have  recourse  to  those  heathenish  fables  ? "  etc.,  etc. 
Again  in  a  collection  of  canons,  which  is  sometimes 
assigned  to  a  synod  at  Carthage  a.d.  398,  the  i6th 
canon  in  the  collection  runs  thus  :  "  A  bishop  shall 
read  no  heathen  books,  and  heretical  books  only  when 
necessary."  The  Carthaginian  synod  of  398  is  a 
fiction,  and  some  of  the  canons  in  the  collection  deal 
with  controversies  of  a  much  later  date:  but  we  need  not 
doubt  that  all  the  canons  were  enacted  in  some  Church 
or  other  in  the  course  of  the  first  six  centuries.  The 
spirit  of  this  one  is  very  much  in  harmony  with  the 
known  tendencies  of  the  sixth  century ;  and  we  find 
Gregory  the  Great  (a.d.  544 — 604)  making  precisely  the 
same  regulation.  He  forbad  bishops  to  study  heathen 
literature,  and  in  one  of  his  letters  {Epp.,  ix.  48)  he 
rebukes  Desiderius,  Bishop  of  Vienne,  for  giving  his 
clergy  instruction  in  grammar,  which  involved  the 
reading  of  the  heathen  poets.  "  The  praises  of  Christ 
do  not  admit  of  being  joined  in  the  same  mouth  with 
the  praises  of  Jupiter ;  and  it  is  a  grave  and  execrable 
thing  for  bishops  to  sing  what  even  for  a  religious  lay- 
man is  unbecoming."  The  story  that  he  purposely 
burnt  the  Palatine  library  is  not  traced  earlier  than  the 
twelfth  century,  and  is  probably  untrue  ;  but  it  indicates 
the  traditional  belief  respecting  his  attitude  towards 
classical  literature.     And  it  is  certainly  true  that  he  was 


i.  12,  13.]  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE.  233 

twice  in  Constantinople,  and  on  the  second  occasion 
remained  there  three  years  (a.d.  579 — 582),  and  yet 
never  learnt  Greek.  In  his  time,  as  we  learn  both 
from  himself  and  his  contemporary,  Gregory  of  Tours, 
the  belief  was  very  prevalent  that  the  end  of  the  world 
was  at  hand  ;  and  it  was  argued  that  mankind  had 
more  serious  things  to  attend  to  than  the  study  of 
pagan  literature — or  indeed  any  literature  that  was  not 
connected  with  the  Scriptures  or  the  Church.  Hence- 
forward, in  the  words  of  Gregory  of  Tours,  "  the  study 
of  literature  perished  "  :  and,  although  there  were  some 
bright  spots  at  Jarrow  and  elsewhere,  yet  on  the 
whole  the  chief  services  which  Christianity  rendered  to 
classical  learning  during  the  next  few  centuries,  were 
the  preservation  of  classical  authors  in  the  libraries  of 
monasteries  and  the  preservation  of  the  classical  lan- 
guages in  the  liturgies  of  the  Church. 

The  question  will  perhaps  never  cease  to  be  argued, 
although  it  is  hardly  probable  that  so  extreme  a  view 
as  that  of  Gregory  the  Great  will  ever  again  become 
prevalent.  Let  us  take  a  statement  of  the  question 
from  the  utterances  of  one  who  will  not  be  suspected 
of  want  of  capacity  or  of  experience  in  the  matter,  or  of 
want  of  sympathy  with  stern  and  serious  views  respect- 
ing education  and  life. 

^'  Some  one  will  say  to  me  perhaps,"  wrote  John 
Henry  Newnan  in  1859,  '^our  youth  shall  not  be 
corrupted.  We  will  dispense  with  all  general  or 
national  literature  whatever,  if  it  be  so  exceptional ;  we 
will  have  a  Christian  Literature  of  our  own,  as  pure,  as 
true  as  the  Jewish."  "You  cannot  have  it.  .  .  .  From 
the  nature  of  the  case,  if  Literature  is  to  be  made  a 
study  of  human  nature,  you  cannot  have  a  Christian 
Literature.     It  is  a  contradiction  in  terms  to  attempt  a 


234  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

sinless  Literature  of  sinful  man.  You  may  gather 
together  something  very  great  and  high,  something 
higher  than  any  literature  ever  was ;  and  when  you 
have  done  so,  you  will  find  that  it  is  not  Literature  at 
all.  You  will  simply  have  left  the  dehneation  of  man, 
as  such,  and  have  substituted  for  it,  as  far  as  you 
have  had  anything  to  substitute,  that  of  man,  as  he  is 
or  might  be,  under  certain  special  advantages.  Give 
up  the  study  of  man,  as  such,  if  so  it  must  be ;  but  say 
you  do  so.  Do  not  say  you  are  studying  him,  his 
history,  his  mind  and  his  heart,  when  you  are  studying 
something  else.  Man  is  a  being  of  genius,  passion, 
intellect,  conscience,  power.  He  exercises  his  great 
gifts  in  various  ways,  in  great  deeds,  in  great  thoughts, 
in  heroic  acts,  in  hateful  crimes.  .  .  .  Literature 
records  them  all  to  the  life.  .  .  . 

**  We  should  be  shrinking  from  a  plain  duty,  did  we 
leave  out  Literature  from  Education.  For  why  do  we 
educate  except  to  prepare  for  the  world  ?  Why  do  we 
cultivate  the  intellect  of  the  many  beyond  the  first 
elements  of  knowledge,  except  ...  to  fit  men  of  the 
world  for  the  world  ?  We  cannot  possibly  keep  them 
from  plunging  into  the  world,  with  all  its  ways  and 
principles  and  maxims,  when  their  time  comes ;  but  we 
can  prepare  them  against  what  is  inevitable ;  and  it  is 
not  the  way  to  learn  to  swim  in  troubled  waters,  never 
to  have  gone  into  them.  Proscribe  (I  do  not  say 
particular  authors,  particular  works,  particular  passages) 
but  Secular  Literature  as  such  :  cut  out  from  your  class 
books  all  broad  manifestations  of  the  natural  man ; 
and  those  manifestations  are  waiting,  for  your  pupil's 
benefit,  at  the  very  doors  of  your  lecture  room  in  living 
and  breathing  substance.  They  will  meet  him  there  in 
all   the   charm   of  novelty,  and  all  the  fascination  of 


i.  12,  13.)  UNCHRISTIAN  LITERATURE.  235 

genius  or  of  amiableness.  To-day  a  pupil,  to-morrow 
a  member  of  the  great  world :  to-day  confined  to  the 
Lives  of  the  Saints,  to-morrow  thrown  upon  Babel ; — 
thrown  on  Babel,  without  the  honest  indulgence  of  wit 
and  humour  and  imagination  ever  permitted  to  him, 
without  any  fastidiousness  of  taste  wrought  into  him, 
without  any  rule  given  him  for  discriminating  '  the 
precious  from  the  vile/  beauty  from  sin,  the  truth  from 
the  sophistry  of  nature,  what  is  innocent  from  what  is 
poison."  * 

Many  Christians  are  apt  to  forget  that  all  truth  is  of 
God ;  and  that  every  one  who  in  an  earnest  spirit 
endeavours  to  ascertain  and  to  teach  what  is  true  in  any 
department  of  human  knowledge,  is  doing  God's  work. 
The  Spirit,  we  are  promised  by  Christ  Himself,  ''shall 
lead  you  into  all  the  Truth^^  and  "the  Truth  shall  make 
you  free."  Our  business  is  to  see  that  nothing  claims 
the  name  of  truth  unlawfully.  It  is  not  our  business  to 
prohibit  anything  that  can  make  good  its  claim  to  be 
accounted  true. 

Those  who  enjoy  large  opportunities  of  study,  and 
especially  those  who  have  the  responsibility  not  only  of 
learning  but  of  teaching,  must  beware  of  setting  their 
own  narrow  limits  to  the  domain  of  what  is  useful  and 
true.  It  has  a  far  wider  range  than  the  wants  which 
we  feel  in  ourselves  or  which  we  can  trace  in  others. 
Even  the  whole  experience  of  mankind  would  not 
suffice  to  give  the  measure  of  it.  We  dishonour  rather 
than  reverence  the  Bible,  when  we  attempt  to  confine 
ourselves  and  others  to  the  study  of  it.  Much  of  its 
secret  and  inexhaustible  store  of  treasure  will  remain 

*  J.  H.  Newman,  The  Scope  and  Nature  of  University  Education^  pp. 
336 — 342.  The  whole  discourse,  "The  Church  and  Liberal  Educa- 
tion," is  an  eloquent  and  noble  vindication  of  the  claims  of  literature. 


236  THS:  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS.  -, 

undiscovered  by  us,  until  our  hearts  are  warmed,  our- 
intellects  quickened,  and  our  experience  enlarged,  by 
the  masterpieces  of  human  genius.  "  To  the  pure  all 
things  are  pure."  In  the  first  century,  in  which  the 
perils  of  heathenism  to  Christianity  were  tenfold  what 
they  are  at  present,  St.  Paul  in  plain  terms  told  his 
converts  that  if  they  liked  to  accept  the  invitations  of 
their  heathen  friends  and  acquaintances,  they  need  not 
scruple  to  do  so  (i  Cor.  x.  27) ;  and  by  his  own 
example,  he  shows  them  that  they  may  enjoy  and  use 
what  is  beautiful  and  true  in  heathen  literature.  Let 
us  beware  of  narrowing  the  liberty  wisely  allowed  by 
him.  Each  one  of  us  can  readily  find  out  what  is 
dangerous  for  himself.  There  is  plenty  that  is  not 
dangerous :  let  him  freely  enjoy  that.  But  the  limits 
that  are  wise  for  ourselves  are  not  to  bind  others. 
Their  liberty  is  not  to  be  circumscribed  by  our  con- 
science. "  The  earth  is  the  Lord's  and  the  fulness 
thereof." 


CHAPTER   XXI. 

THE  MEANING  AND  VALUE  OF  SOBERMINDEDNESS.-^ 
THE  USE  AND  ABUSE  OF  RELIGIOUS  EMOTION. 

"  But  speak  thou  the  things  which  befit  the  sound  doctrine  :  that 
aged  men  be  temperate,  grave,  soberminded,  sound  in  faith,  in  love, 
in  patience,  that  aged  women  likewise  be  reverent  in  demeanour 
not  slanderers  nor  enslaved  to  much  wine,  teachers  of  that  which 
is  good ;  that  they  may  train  the  young  women  to  love  their 
husbands,  to  love  their  children,  to  be  soberminded,  chaste,  workers 
at  home,  kind,  being  in  subjection  to  their  own  husbands,  that 
the  word  of  God  be  not  blasphemed  :  the  younger  men  likewise 
exhort  to  be  soberminded." — Titus  ii.  I — 6. 

IN  marked  contrast  to  the  seducing  teachers  who 
are  described  in  the  concluding  verses  of  the  first 
chapter,  Titus  is  charged  to  teach  that  which  is  right. 
^'  But  speak  thou  the  things  which  befit  the  sound 
doctrine."  What  they  taught  was  to  the  last  degree 
unwholesome,  fiiU  of  senseless  frivolities  and  baseless 
distinctions  respecting  meats  and  drinks,  times  and 
seasons.  Such  things  were  fatal  alike  to  sound  and 
robust  faith  and  to  all  moral  earnestness.  Belief 
was  frittered  away  in  a  credulous  attention  to  "Jewish 
fables/'  and  character  was  depraved  by  a  weak 
punctiliousness  about  fanciful  details.  As  in  the 
Pharisees,  whom  Jesus  Christ  denounced,  scrupulosity 
about  trifles  led  to  neglect  of  "  the  weightier  matters  of 
the  law."     But  in  these  'Wain  talkers  and  deceivers/' 


238  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

whom  Titus  had  to  oppose,  the  trifles  by  which  they 
distracted  their  hearers  from  matters  of  the  highest  im- 
portance were  not  even  the  minor  duties  enjoined  by 
the  Law  or  the  Gospel:  they  were  mere  "command- 
ments of  men."  In  opposition  to  calamitous  teaching 
of  this  kind;  Titus  is  to  insist  upon  what  is  healthy 
and  sound. 

All  classes  are  to  be  attended  to,  and  the  exhortations 
specially  needed  are  to  be  given  to  each :  to  the  older 
men  and  older  women,  the  younger  women  and  the 
younger  men,  to  whom  Titus  is  to  show  himself  an 
example  :  and  finally  to  slaves,  for  salvation  is  offered 
to  all  men,  and  is  for  no  privileged  class. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  sound  teaching  which 
Titus  is  charged  to  give  to  the  different  sections  of 
his  flock  relates  almost  exclusively  to  conduct.  There 
is  scarcely  a  hint  in  the  whole  of  this  chapter  that 
can  be  supposed  to  have  reference  to  errors  of  doctrine. 
In  quite  a  general  way  the  old  men  are  to  be  exhorted 
to  be  "  sound  m  faith  "  as  well  as  in  love  and  patience : 
but  otherwise  all  the  instruction  to  be  given  to  old 
and  3^oung,  male  and  female,  bond  and  free,  relates 
to  conduct  in  thought,  word,  and  deed.* 

Nor  is  there  any  hint  that  the  "  vain  talkers  and 
deceivers"  contradicted  (otherwise  than  by  an  unholy 
life)  the  moral  precepts  which  the  Apostle  here  tells 

*  This  makes  one  again  inclined  to  regret  that  the  Revisers 
here  and  elsewhere  have  left  "doctrine"  as  the  translation  of 
didaaKaXla,  while  they  have  in  most  cases  substituted  "teaching" 
for  "doctrine"  as  the  translation  of  dtSaxV'  It  would  hardly  be 
possible  to  confine  either  English  word  to  either  Greek  word 
as  its  invariable  rendering  :  but  where  both  English  words  are 
admissible,  it  seems  better  to  keep  "  teaching  "  (which  is  close  to 
"  teacher  ")  for  didaaKoXia  (which  is  close  to  dL8d<7KaXos)  and  reserve 
"  doctrine  "  for  didaxv  (see  p.  47). 


ii.  1-6.]  VALUE  OF  SOBERMINDEDNESS.  239 

his  delegate  to  communicate  abundantly  to  his  flock. 
We  are  not  to  suppose  that  these  mischievous  teachers 
taught  people  that  there  was  no  harm  in  intemperance, 
or  slander,  or  unchastity,  or  theft.  The  mischief 
which  they  did  consisted  in  their  telling  people  to 
devote  their  attention  to  things  that  were  morally 
unprofitable,  while  no  care  was  taken  to  secure 
attention  to  those  things,  the  observance  of  which 
was  vital.  On  the  contrary,  the  emphasis  laid  upon 
silly  superstitions  led  people  to  suppose  that,  when 
these  had  been  attended  to,  all  duties  had  been  fulfilled; 
and  a  careless,  godless  life  was  the  result.  Thus 
whole  households  were  subverted  by  men  who  made 
religion  a  trade.  This  disastrous  state  of  things  is 
to  be  remedied  by  pointing  out  and  insisting  upon 
the  observances  which  are  of  real  importance  for 
the  spiritual  life.  The  fatal  lowering  of  moral  tone, 
which  the  morbid  and  fanciful  teaching  of  these 
seducers  produced,  is  to  be  counteracted  by  the  bracing 
effects  of  wholesome  moral  teaching. 

No  one  can  read  through  the  indications  which  the 
Apostle  gives  of  what  he  means  by  *'  wholesome  teach- 
ing," without  perceiving  the  key-note  which  rings 
through  it  all ; — sobriety  or  sobermindedness.  The 
aged  men  are  to  be  taught  to  be  "temperate,  grave, 
soberminded."  The  aged  women  to  be  "reverent  in 
demeanour,"  "  that  they  may  school  the  young  women 
...  to  be  sobermindedr  The  younger  men  are  to  be 
"exhorted  to  be  sobermindedy  And  in  giving  the  reason 
for  all  this  he  points  out  God's  purpose  in  His  revela- 
tion to  mankind ;  "  to  the  intent  that,  denying  ungodli- 
ness and  worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly^ 

Now,  what  is  the  precise  meaning  of  this  sobriety  or 
sobermindedness,  on  which  St.  Paul  insists  so  strongly 


240  TH^  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

as  a  duty  to  be  impressed  upon  men  and  women  both 
old  and  young  ? 

The  words  used  in  the  original  Greek  (aoin^pwv, 
<TCD(l)povL^€cv,  G-o)(j)pov6Lp)  signify,  according  to  their 
derivation;*  "  of  sound  mind"  '*  to  make  of  sound  mind/' 
and  "  to  be  of  sound  mind ; "  and  the  quality  which 
they  indicate  is  that  mens  sana  or  healthiness  of 
mental  constitution  which  shows  itself  in  discreet  and 
prudent  conduct,  and  especially  in  self-control.  This 
latter  meaning  is  specially  predominant  in  Attic  writers. 

Thus  Plato  defines  it  as  *^a  kind  of  order  and  a 
controlling  of  certain  pleasures  and  desires,  as  is 
shown  by  the  saying  that  a  man  is  'master  of  himself 
...  an  expression  which  seems  to  mean  that  in  the 
man's  soul  there  are  two  elements,  a  better  and  a 
^orse,  and  when  the  better  controls  the  worse,  then  he 
*s  said  to  be  master  of  himself"  (Rep.,  IV.  p.  431). 
Similarly,  Aristotle  tells  us  that  the  lowest  bodily 
pleasures  are  the  sphere  in  which  this  virtue  of  selt- 
control  is  specially  displayed ;  that  is,  those  bodily 
pleasures  which  the  other  animals  share  with  man,  and 
which  are  consequently  shown  to  be  slavish  and  bestial, 
viz.,  the  pleasures  of  touch  and  taste  (Eth.  N.,  III.  x. 
4,  9 ;  Rhet.,  I.  ix.  9).  And  throughout  the  best  Attic 
writers  the  vices  to  which  self-control  is  opposed  are 
those  which  imply  immoderate  indulgence  in  sensual 
pleasures.  It  is  a  virtue  which  has  a  very  prominent 
place  in  heathen  moral  philosophy.  It  is  one  of  the 
most  obvious  of  virtues.  It  is  manifest  that  in  order  to 
be  a  virtuous  man  at  all  one  must  at  least  have  control 

*  From  (TcDj,  "safe  and  sound,"  and  (ppriv,  "mind."  The  associa- 
tions of  the  word  are  seen  in  Aristotle's  erroneous  derivation  (^Eth. 
N,f  VI.  V.  5) ;  "'Eivdev  Kal  ti.v  awcppocrvvrjv  rovry  Trpoaayopevo/xev  t^ 
6v6fi(3LTi^  <i$  adi^ovffav  ttjv  <pp6v7](nv. 


ii.  1-6.]  VALUE  OF  SOBJ^RMINJDEDNESS,  2^41 

over  one's  lowest  appetites.  And  to  a  heathen  it  is 
one  of  the  most  impressive  of  virtues.  All  of  us  have 
experience  of  the  difficulty  of  regulating  our  passions ; 
and  to  those  who  know  nothing  of  Christian  teaching 
or  of  the  grace  of  God  the  difficulty  is  increased  tenfold. 
Hence  to  the  savage  the  ascetic  seems  to  be  almost 
superhuman;  and  even  in  the  cultivated  pagan  absti- 
nence from  bodily  pleasure  and  steadfast  resistance  of 
sensual  temptation  excite  wonder  and  admiration.  The 
beautiful  panegyric  of  Socrates  put  into  the  mouth  of 
Alcibiades  in  the  Symposium  of  Plato  illustrates  this 
feeling :  and  Euripides  styles  such  virtue  as  the 
"  noblest  gift  of  the  gods." 

But  when  this  virtue  becomes  illuminated  by  the 
Gospel  its  meaning  is  intensified.  The  "soberminded- 
ness "  or  ^'  sobriety  "  of  the  New  Testament  is  some- 
thing more  than  the  *'  self-  control "  or  ^^  temperance  " 
of  Plato  and  Aristotle.  Its  sphere  is  not  confined  to 
the  lowest  sensual  enjoyments.  Self-mastery  with 
regard  to  such  things  is  still  included ;  but  other  things 
are  included  also.  It  is  that  power  over  ourselves 
which  keeps  under  control,  not  only  bodily  impulses, 
but  spiritual  impulses  also.  There  is  a  spiritual  frenzy 
analogous  to  physical  madness,  and  there  are  spiritual 
self-indulgences  analogous  to  bodily  intemperance.  For 
these  things  also  self-mastery  is  needed. 

St.  Paul  in  writing  to  the  Corinthians  sums  up  his 
own  life  under  the  two  conditions  of  being  out  of  his 
mind  and  in  his  right  mind.  His  opponents  at  Corinth, 
like  Festus  (Acts  xxvi.  24),  accused  him  of  being  mad. 
He  is  quite  ready  to  admit  that  at  times  he  has  been 
in  a  condition  which,  if  they  like,  they  may  call  mad- 
ness. But  that  is  no  affair  of  theirs.  Of  his  sanity 
and  sobriety  at  other  tim.es  there  can  be  no  question  ; 

16 


242  THE  EPISTLE  TO   TITUS. 

and  his  conduct  during  these  times  of  sobriety  is  of 
importance  to  them.  *'  For  whether  we  went  out  of 
our  mind  "  (e^earrjixev),  ^'  it  was  for  God,  or  are  in  our 
right  mind  "  (acocppovov/jiev,  "  are  of  sober  mind,"  R.V.), 
*^  it  is  for  you  "  (2  Cor.  v.  13).  The  Apostle  ^*  went  out 
of  his  mind,"  as  his  enemies  chose  to  say,  at  his  con- 
version on  the  road  to  Damascus,  when  a  special 
revelation  of  Jesus  Christ  was  granted  to  him  :  and  to 
this  phase  of  his  existence  belonged  his  visions  (Acts 
xvi.  9 ;  xxvii.  23),  ecstasies  and  revelations  (2  Cor.  xii. 
I — 7),  and  his  "  speaking  with  tongues"  (i  Cor.  xiv.  18). 
And  he  was  ''  in  his  right  mind  "  in  all  the  great  tact, 
and  sagacity,  and  self-denial,  which  he  exhibited  for 
the  well-being  of  his  converts. 

It  was  absolutely  necessary  that  the  latter  condition 
of  mind  should  be  the  predominant  one,  and  should 
control  the  other;  that  the  ecstasy  should  be  excep- 
tional and  the  sobermindedness  habitual,  and  that  the 
sobermindedness  should  not  be  turned  into  self-exalta- 
tion by  the  remembrance  of  the  ecstasy.  There  was 
so  much  danger  of  this  evil  in  St.  Paul's  case,  owing 
to  ''  the  exceeding  greatness  of  the  revelations  "  granted 
to  him,  that  the  special  discipline  of  the  "  stake  for  the 
flesh  "  was  given  to  him  to  counteract  the  temptation  ; 
for  it  was  in  the  flesh,  that  is  the  sinful  principle  of 
his  nature,  that  the  tendency  to  pride  himself  on  his 
extraordinary  spiritual  experiences  was  found. 

St.  Paul's  case  was,  no  doubt,  highly  exceptional ; 
but  in  degree,  rather  than  in  kind.  Very  many  of  his 
converts  had  similar,  although  less  sublime,  and  per- 
haps less  frequent,  experiences.  Spiritual  gifts  of  a 
supernatural  kind  had  been  bestowed  in  great  abun- 
dance upon  many  of  the  members  of  the  Church  of 
Corinth   (i   Cor.    xii.    7 — 10),    and  were  the  occasion 


ii.  1-6.]  VALUE   OF  SOBERMINDEDNESS.  243 

of  some  of  the  grievous  disorders  which  were  found 
there,  because  they  were  not  always  accompanied  by 
sobriety,  but  were  allowed  to  become  incitements  to 
licence  and  spiritual  pride.  Few  things  show  more 
plainly  the  necessity  for  self-control  and  soberminded- 
ness,  when  men  are  under  the  influence  of  strong 
religious  emotion,  than  the  state  of  things  existing 
among  the  Corinthian  converts,  as  indicated  in  St. 
Paul's  two  letters  to  them.  They  had  been  guilty  of 
two  errors.  First,  they  had  formed  an  exaggerated 
estimate  of  some  of  the  gifts  bestowed  upon  them, 
especially  of  the  mysterious  power  of  speaking  with 
tongues.  And,  secondly,  they  had  supposed  that 
persons  so  highly  gifted  as  themselves  were  above, 
not  only  ordinary  precautions,  but  ordinary  principles. 
Instead  of  seeing  that  such  special  privileges  required 
them  to  be  specially  on  their  guard,  they  considered 
that  they  stood  in  no  need  of  vigilance,  and  might 
safely  disregard  custom,  and  common  decency,  and 
even  principles  of  morality.  Previous  to  their  conver- 
sion they  had  been  idolaters,  and  therefore  had  had  no 
experience  of  spiritual  gifts  and  manifestations.  Con- 
sequently, when  the  experience  came,  they  were  thrown 
off  their  balance,  and  knew  neither  how  to  estimate 
these  gifts,  nor  how  to  prevent  "what  should  have 
been  to  their  wealth,  becoming  to  them  an  occasion  of 
falling." 

It  might  be  thought  that  the  conditions  of  the 
Christian  life  of  St.  Paul  and  of  his  converts  were  too 
unlike  our  own  to  yield  any  clear  lesson  in  this  respect. 
We  have  not  been  converted  to  Christianity  from  either 
Judaism  or  paganism ;  and  we  have  received  no  special 
revelations  or  extraordinary  spiritual  gifts.  But  this 
is  not  so.     Our  religious  life,  like  theirs,  has  its  two 


244  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

different  phases  ;  its  times  of  excitement,  and  its  times 
of  freedom  from  excitement.  We  no  longer  work 
miracles,  or  speak  with  tongues ;  but  we  have  our 
exceptional  moments  of  impassioned  feelings,  and  high- 
strung  aspirations,  and  subHme  thoughts ;  and  we  are 
just  as  liable  as  the  Corinthians  were  to  plume  our- 
selves upon  them,  to  rest  in  them,  and  to  think  that, 
because  we  have  them,  all  must  necessarily  be  well 
with  us.  We  cannot  too  often  remind  ourselves  that 
such  things  are  not  religion,  and  are  not  even  the 
material  out  of  which  religion  is  made.  They  are 
the  scaffolding  and  appliances,  rather  than  the  formed 
edifice  or  the  unformed  stones  and  timber.  They  supply 
helps  and  motive  power.  They  are  intended  to  carry 
us  over  difficulties  and  drudgery ;  and  hence  are  more 
common  in  the  earlier  stages  of  a  Christian's  career 
than  in  the  time  of  maturity,  and  at  crises  when  the 
career  has  been  interrupted,  than  when  it  is  progressing 
with  steadfast  regularity.  Conversion  to  Christianity 
in  the  case  of  a  pagan,  and  the  realization  of  what 
Christianity  really  means  in  the  case  of  a  nominal 
Christian,  involve  pain  and  depression  :  and  the 
attempt  to  turn  again  and  repent  after  grievous  sin 
involves  pain  and  depression.  Strong  religious 
emotion  helps  us  to  get  the  better  of  these,  and  may, 
if  we  use  it  aright,  give  us  an  impetus  in  the  right 
direction.  But,  from  the  very  nature  of  things,  it 
cannot  continue,  and  it  is  not  desirable  that  it  should. 
It  will  soon  run  its  course,  and  we  shall  be  left  to  go 
on  our  way  with  our  ordinary  resources.  And  our 
duty  then  is  twofold ; — first,  not  to  repine  at  its  with- 
drawal ;  "  the  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken 
away,  blessed  be  the  Name  of  the  Lord"  :  and,  secondly, 
to  take  care  that  it  does  not  evaporate  in  empty  self- 


ii.  1-6.]  VALUE   OF  SOBERMINDEDNESS.  245 

complacency,  but  is  translated  into  action.  Impassioned 
feeling,  that  leads  on  to  conduct,  strengthens  character  ; 
impassioned  feeling,  that  ends  with  itself,  weakens  it. 
If  religious  excitement  is  not  to  do  us  more  harm  than 
good,  by  leaving  us  more  insensible  to  spiritual 
influences  than  we  were  before,  it  must  be  accompanied 
by  the  sobriety  which  refuses  to  be  exalted  by  such 
an  experience,  and  which,  in  making  use  of  it,  controls 
it.  And,  moreover,  these  warm  feelings  and  enthu- 
siastic aspirations  after  what  is  good  must  lead  on 
to  calm  and  steadfast  performance  of  what  is  good. 
One  act  of  real  self-denial,  one  genuine  sacrifice  of 
pleasure  to  duty,  is  worth  hours  of  religious  emotion 
and  thousands  of  pious  thoughts. 

But  sobermindedness  will  not  only  keep  us  from 
being  pleased  with  ourselves  for  our  impassioned  feel- 
ings about  spiritual  things,  and  help  us  to  turn  them  to 
good  account ;  it  will  also  preserve  us  from  what  is  even 
worse  than  allowing  them  to  pass  away  without  result, 
viz.,  talking  about  them.  To  feel  warmly  and  to  do 
nothing  is  to  waste  motive  power :  it  leads  to  hardening 
of  the  heart  against  good  influences  in  the  future.  To 
feel  warmly  and  talk  about  it  is  to  abuse  motive  power : 
it  leads  to  puffing  up  of  the  heart  in  spiritual  pride 
and  to  blinding  the  inward  eye  with  self-complacency. 
And  this  is  the  fatal  mistake  which  is  made  by  some 
religious  teachers  at  the  present  day.  Strong  feelings 
are  excited  in  those  whom  they  wish  to  lead  from  a  life 
of  sin  to  a  life  of  holiness.  Sorrow  for  the  past  and  a 
desire  for  better  things  are  aroused,  and  the  sinner  is 
thrown  into  a  condition  of  violent  distress  and  expecta- 
tion. And  then,  instead  of  being  gently  led  on  to  work 
out  his  salvation  in  fear  and  trembling,  the  penitent  is 
encouraged  to  seek  excitement  again  and  again,  and  to 


246  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 


attempt  to  produce  it  in  others,  by  constant  rehearsing 
of  his  own  rehgious  experiences.  What  should  have 
been  a  secret  between  himself  and  his  Saviour,  or  at 
most  shared  only  with  some  wise  adviser,  is  thrown 
out  publicly  to  the  whole  world,  to  the  degradation 
both  of  what  is  told  and  of  the  character  of  him  who 
tells  it. 

The  error  of  mistaking  religious  feeling  for  holiness, 
and  good  thoughts  for  good  conduct,  is  a  very  common 
one ;  and  it  is  confined  to  neither  sex,  and  to  no  period 
of  life.  Men  as  well  as  women,  and  the  old  as  well  as 
the  young,  need  to  be  on  their  guard  against  it.  And 
therefore  the  Apostle  urges  Titus  to  exhort  all  alike  to 
be  soberminded.  There  are  times  when  to  be  agitated 
about  religion,  and  have  warm  feelings  either  of  sorrow 
or  joy,  is  natural  and  right.  When  one  is  first  roused 
to  desire  a  life  of  holiness ;  when  one  is  conscience- 
stricken  at  having  fallen  into  some  grievous  sin ;  when 
one  is  bowed  down  under  the  weight  of  some  great 
private  or  public  calamity,  or  elated  by  the  vivid  appre- 
ciation of  some  great  private  or  public  blessing.  At  all 
such  seasons  it  is  reasonable  and  proper  that  we  should 
experience  strong  religious  emotion.  Not  to  do  so 
would  be  a  sign  of  insensibility  and  deadness  of  heart. 
But  do  not  let  us  suppose  that  the  presence  of  such 
feelings  mark  us  out  as  specially  religious  or  spiritually 
gifted  people.  They  do  nothing  of  the  kind.  They 
merely  prove  that  we  are  not  utterly  dead  to  spiritual 
influences.  Whether  we  are  the  better  or  the  worse 
for  such  feelings,  depends  upon  the  use  that  we  make 
of  them.  And  do  not  let  us  expect  that  these  emotions 
will  be  permanent,  which  will  certainly  not  be  the  case, 
or  that  they  will  frequently  return,  which  will  probably 
not  be  the  case.     Above  all,  let  us  not  be  discouraged 


ii.  1-6.]  VALUE   OF  SOBERMINDEDNESS,  247 

if  they  become  more  and  more  rare,  as  time  goes  on. 
They  ought  to  become  more  rare ;  for  they  are  sure 
to  become  less  frequent  as  we  advance  in  holiness. 
In  the  steady  growth  and  natural  development  of  the 
spiritual  life  there  is  not  much  need  of  them  or  room 
for  them.  They  have  done  their  work  when  they  have 
carried  us  over  the  breakers*,  which  troubled  our  early 
efforts,  into  the  less  excited  waters  of  consistent 
obedience.  And  to  be  able  to  progress  without  them 
is  a  surer  token  of  God's  grace  than  to  have  them.  To 
continue  steadfast  in  our  obedience,  without  the  luxury 
of  warm  feelings  and  impassioned  devotion,  is  more 
pleasing  in  His  sight  than  all  the  intense  longings  to 
be  freed  from  sin,  and  all  the  passionate  supplications 
for  increased  holiness  that  we  have  ever  felt  and  offered. 
The  test  of  fellowship  with  God  is  not  warmth  of 
devotion  but  holiness  of  life.  ^*  Hereby  know  we  that 
we  know  Him,  if  we  keep  His  commandments^ 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

THE  MORAL  CONDITION  OF  SLA  VES.— THEIR  ADORN- 
MENT OF  THE  LOCIRINE   OF  GOD, 

"Exhort  servants  to  be  in  subjection  to  their  own  masters,  and  to 
be  well-pleasing  to  them  in  all  things ;  not  gainsaying  ;  not  pur- 
loining, but  showing  all  good  fidelity;  that  they  may  adorn  the 
doctrine  of  God  our  Saviour  in  all  things." — Titus  ii.  9,  10. 

SOMETHING  has  already  been  said  in  a  previous 
discourse  (on  I  Tim.  vi.  i,  2)  respecting  the  in- 
stitution of  slavery  in  the  Koman  Empire  in  the  first 
age  of  Christianity.  It  w^as  not  only  unchristian  but 
inhuman  ;  and  it  was  so  widespread  that  the  slaves 
outnumbered  the  freemen.  Nevertheless  the  Apostles 
and  their  successors  taught  neither  to  the  slaves  that 
they  ought  to  resist  a  dominion  which  was  immoral 
both  in  effect  and  in  origin,  nor  to  the  masters  that  as 
Christians  they  were  bound  to  set  their  servants  free.* 
Christianity  did  indeed  labour  for  the  abolition  of 
slavery,  but  by  quite  other  methods.  It  taught  masters 
and  slaves  alike  that  all  men  have  a  common  Divine 
parentage  and  a  common  Divine  redemption,  and  con- 
sequently are  equally  bound  to  show  brotherly  love  and 

*  The  stories  told  in  Bollandus  of  Roman  converts  under  Trajan 
and  Diocletian,  who  at  their  baptism  manumitted  their  slaves,  are 
not  very  credible.  Such  things,  if  they  happened  at  all,  were  very 
exceptional. 


ii.  9,  lo.]     THE  MORAL   CONDITION  OF  SLA  VES.  249 

equally  endowed  with  spiritual  freedom.  It  showed 
that  the  slave  and  his  master  are  alike  children  of 
God,  and  as  such  free ;  and  alike  servants  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  as  such  bondmen, — bondmen  in  that 
service  which  is  the  only  true  freedom.  And  thus  very 
slowly,  but  surely,  Christianity  disintegrated  and  dis- 
persed those  unwholesome  conditions  and  false  ideas, 
which  made  slavery  to  be  everywhere  possible,  and  to 
seem  to  most  men  to  be  necessary.  And  wherever 
these  conditions  and  ideas  were  swept  away,  slavery 
gradually  died  out  or  was  formally  abolished.* 

As  the  number  of  slaves  in  the  first  century  was  so 
enormous,  it  was  only  in  accordance  with  human  pro- 
bability that  many  of  the  first  converts  to  Christianity 
belonged  to  this  class ;  all  the  more  so,  as  Christianity, 
like  most  great  movements,  began  with  the  lower 
orders  and  thence  spread  upwards.  Among  the  better 
class  of  slaves,  that  is  those  who  were  not  so  degraded 
as  to  be  insensible  of  their  own  degradation,  the  Gospel 
spread  freely.  It  offered  them  just  what  they  needed, 
and  the  lack  of  which  had  turned  their  life  into  one 
great  despair.  It  gave  them  something  to  hope  for  and 
something  to  live  for.  Their  condition  in  the  world 
was  both  socially  and  morally  deplorable.  Socially 
they  had  no  rights  beyond  what  their  lord  chose  to 
allow  them.  They  were  ranked  with  the  brutes,  and 
were  in  a  worse  condition  than  any  brutes,  for  they 
were  capable  of  wrongs  and  suff"erings  of  which  the 
brutes  are  incapable  or  insensible.  And  St.  Chrysos- 
tom  in  commenting  on  this  passage  points  out  how 

*  Pagan  inscriptions  carefully  distinguish  between  freemen  and 
slaves ;  Christian  inscriptions  seldom  or  never.  There  seems  to  be 
no  w^ell-ascertained  instance  in  the  Roman  catacombs  D^ct.  of 
Christ  Ant.,  Vol.  ii.  p.  1904. 


250  THE  EPISTLE    TO   TITUS. 

inevitable  it  was  that  the  moral  character  of  slaves 
should  as  a  rule  be  bad.  They  have  no  motive  for 
trying  to  be  good,  and  very  little  opportunity  of  learn- 
ing what  is  right.  Every  one,  slaves  included,  admits 
that  as  a  race  they  are  passionate,  intractable,  and  in- 
disposed to  virtue,  not  because  God  has  made  them  so, 
but  from  bad  education  and  the  neglect  of  their  masters. 
The  masters  care  nothing  about  their  slaves'  morals, 
except  so  far  as  their  vices  are  likely  to  interfere  with 
their  masters'  pleasures  or  interests.  Hence  the  slaves, 
having  no  one  to  care  for  them,  naturally  sink  into  an 
abyss  of  wickedness.  Their  chief  aim  is  to  avoid,  not 
crime,  but  being  found  out.  For  if  free  men,  able  to 
select  their  own  society,  and  with  many  other  advan- 
tages of  education  and  home  life,  find  it  difficult  to 
avoid  the  contact  and  contaminating  influence  of  the 
vicious,  what  can  one  expect  from  those  who  have  none 
of  these  advantages,  and  have  no  possibility  of  escape 
from  degrading  surroundings  ?  They  are  never  taught 
to  respect  themselves ;  they  have  no  experience  of 
persons  who  do  respect  themselves  ;  and  they  never 
receive  any  respect  from  either  their  superiors  or  their 
fellows.  How  can  virtue  or  self-respect  be  learnt  in 
such  a  school  ?  "  For  all  these  reasons  it  is  a  difficult 
and  surprising  thing  that  there  should  ever  be  a 
good  slave."  And  yet  this  is  the  class  which  St.  Paul 
singles  out  as  being  able  in  a  peculiar  way  to  adorn  the 
doctrine  of  God  our  Saviour  in  all  things." 

"  To  adorn  the  doctrine  of  God."  How  is  the  doctrine 
of  God  to  be  adorned  ?  And  how  are  slaves  capable 
of  adorning  it  ? 

"  The  doctrine  of  God "  is  that  which  He  teaches, 
which  He  has  revealed  for  our  instruction.  It  is  His 
levelation  of  Himself.     He   is   the   author   of  it,  the 


ii.9,  lo.]     THE  MORAL   CONDITION  OP  SLAVES.  251 

giver  of  it,  and  the  subject  of  it.  He  is  also  its  end  or 
purpose.  It  is  granted  in  order  that  men  may  know 
Him,  and  love  Him,  and  be  brought  home  to  Him. 
All  these  facts  are  a  guarantee  to  us  of  its  importance 
and  its  security.  It  comes  from  One  Who  is  infinitely 
great  and  infinitely  true.  And  yet  it  is  capable  of 
being  adorned  by  those  to  whom  it  is  given. 

There  is  nothing  paradoxical  in  this.  It  is  precisely 
those  things  which  in  themselves  are  good  and  beauti- 
ful that  we  consider  capable  of  adornment  and  worthy 
of  it.  To  add  ornament  to  an  object  that  is  intrinsi- 
cally vile  or  hideous,  does  but  augment  the  existing 
bad  qualities  by  adding  to  them  a  glaring  incongruity. 
Baseness,  which  might  otherwise  have  escaped  notice, 
becomes  conspicuous  and  grotesque.  No  person  of 
good  taste  and  good  sense  would  waste  and  degrade 
ornament  by  bestowing  it  upon  an  unworthy  object. 
The  very  fact,  therefore,  that  adornment  is  attempted 
proves  that  those  who  make  the  attempt  consider  the 
object  to  be  adorned  an  object  worthy  of  honour  and 
capable  of  receiving  it.  Thus  adornment  is  a  form  of 
homage  :  it  is  the  tribute  which  the  discerning  pay  to 
beauty. 

But  adornment  has  its  relations  not  only  to  those  who 
bestow,  but  to  those  also  who  receive  it.  It  is  a  re- 
flexion of  the  mind  of  the  giver  ;  but  it  has  also  an  influ- 
ence on  the  recipient.  And,  first,  it  makes  that  which  is 
adorned  more  conspicuous  and  better  known.  A  picture 
in  a  frame  is  more  likely  to  be  looked  at  than  one  that 
is  unframed.  An  ornamented  building  attracts  more 
attention  than  a  plain  one.  A  king  in  his  royal  robes 
is  more  easily  recognized  as  such  than  one  in  ordinary 
clothing.  Adornment,  therefore,  is  an  advertisement  of 
merit :  it  makes  the  adorned  object  more  readily  per- 


252  THE  EPISTLE  TO  TITUS. 

ceived  and  more  widely  appreciated.  And,  secondly,  if  it 
is  well  chosen  and  well  bestowed,  it  augments  the  merit 
of  that  which  it  adorns.  That  which  was  fail*  before  is 
made  still  fairer  by  suitable  ornament.  The  beautiful 
painting  is  still  more  beautiful  in  a  worth}^  frame.  Noble 
ornament  increases  the  dignity  of  a  noble  structure. 
And  a  person  of  royal  presence  becomes  still  more  regal 
when  royally  arrayed.  Adornment,  therefore,  is  not 
only  an  advertisement  of  beauty,  it  is  also  a  real 
enhancement  of  it. 

All  these  particulars  hold  good  with  regard  to  the 
adornment  of  the  doctrine  of  God.  By  trying  to  adorn 
it  and  make  it  more  beautiful  and  more  attractive,  we 
show  our  respect  for  it ;  we  pay  our  tribute  of  homage 
and  admiration.  We  show  to  all  the  world  that  we 
think  it  estimable,  and  worthy  of  attention  and  honour. 
And  by  so  doing  we  make  the  doctrine  of  God  better 
known  :  we  bring  it  under  the  notice  of  others  who 
might  otherwise  have  overlooked  it :  we  force  it  upon 
their  attention.  Thus,  without  consciously  intending 
to  be  anything  of  the  kind,  we  become  evangelists :  we 
proclaim  to  those  among  whom  we  live  that  we  have 
received  a  Gospel  that  satisfies  us.  Moreover,  the 
doctrine  which  we  thus  adorn  becomes  really  more 
beautiful  in  consequence.  Teaching  which  nobody 
admires,  which  nobody  accepts — teaching  which  teaches 
nobody,  is  a  poor  thing.  It  may  be  true,  it  may  have 
great  capabilities ;  but  for  the  present  it  is  as  useless 
as  a  book  in  the  hands  of  an  illiterate  savage,  and  as 
valueless  as  treasures  lying  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea. 
Our  acceptance  of  the  doctrine  of  God,  and  our  efforts 
to  adorn  it,  bring  out  its  inherent  life  and  develop  its 
natural  value,  and  every  additional  person  who  joins  us 
in  doing  this  is  an  augmentation  of  its  powers.     It  is 


ii.  9,  lo.]     TJI£  MORAL  CONDITION  OF  SLA  VES,  253 


within  our  power  not  only  to  honour  and  make  better 
known,  but  also  to  enhance,  the  beauty  of  the  doctrine 
of  God. 

But  slaves, — and  such  slaves  as  were  found  through- 
out the  Roman  Empire  in  St.  Paul's  day, — what  have 
they  to  do  with  the  adornment  of  the  doctrine  of  God  ? 
Why  is  this  duty  of  making  the  Gospel  more  beautiful 
specially  mentioned  in  connexion  with  them  ?  That 
the  aristocracy  of  the  Empire,  its  magistrates,  its 
senators,  its  commanders, — supposing  that  any  of  them 
could  be  induced  to  embrace  the  faith  of  Jesus  Christ, 
— should  be  charged  to  adorn  the  doctrines  which  they 
had  accepted,  would  be  intelligible.  Their  acceptance 
of  it  would  be  a  tribute  to  its  dignity.  Their  loyalty 
to  it  would  be  a  proclamation  of  its  merits.  Their 
accession  to  its  ranks  would  be  a  real  augmentation 
of  its  powers  of  attraction.  But  almost  the  reverse  of 
all  this  would  seem  to  be  the  truth  in  the  case  of  slaves. 
Their  tastes  were  so  low,  their  moral  judgment  so 
debased,  that  for  a  religion  to  have  found  a  welcome 
among  slaves  would  hardly  be  a  recommendation  of  it  to 
respectable  people.  And  what  opportunities  had  slaves, 
regarded  as  they  were  as  the  very  outcasts  of  society, 
of  making  the  Gospel  better  known  or  more  attractive  ? 

So  many  a  person,  and  especially  many  a  slave, 
might  have  argued  in  St.  Paul's  hearing;  and  not 
altogether  without  reason  and  support  from  experience. 
The  fact  that  Christianity  was  a  religion  acceptable 
to  slaves  and  the  associates  of  slaves  was  from  very 
early  times  one  of  the  objections  made  against  it  by 
the  heathen,  and  one  of  the  circumstances  which 
prejudiced  men  of  culture  and  refinement  against  it. 
It  was  one  of  the  many  bitter  reproaches  that  Celsus 
brought  against  Christianity,  that  it  laid  itself  out  to 


^54  I^HE  EPISTLE   TO   TiTUS. 

catch  slaves,  women,  and  children,  in  short  the  immoral, 
the  unintellectual,  and  the  ignorant  classes.  And  we 
need  not  suppose  that  this  was  merely  a  spiteful  taunt : 
it  represented  a  deep-seated  and  not  altogether  un- 
reasonable prejudice.  Seeing  how  many  religions  there 
were  at  that  time  which  owed  much  of  their  success 
to  the  fact  that  they  pandered  to  the  vices,  while  they 
presumed  upon  the  folly  and  ignorance  of  mankind, 
it  was  not  an  unjustifiable  presumption  that  a  new  faith 
which  won  many  adherents  in  the  most  degraded  and 
vicious  class  of  society,  was  itself  a  degrading  and 
corrupting  superstition. 

Yet  St.  Paul  knew  what  he  was  about  when  he 
urged  Titus  to  commit  the  "  adorning  of  the  doctrine 
of  God  "  in  a  special  manner  to  slaves  :  and  experience 
has  proved  the  soundness  of  his  judgment.  If  the 
mere  fact  that  many  slaves  accepted  the  faith  could  not 
do  a  great  deal  to  recommend  the  power  and  beauty  of 
the  Gospel,  the  Christian  lives,  which  they  thence- 
forward led,  could.  It  was  a  strong  argument  a  fortiori. 
The  worse  the  unconverted  sinner,  the  more  marvellous 
his  thorough  conversion.  There  must  be  something 
in  a  religion  which  out  of  such  unpromising  material 
as  slaves  could  make  obedient,  gentle,  honest,  sober, 
and  chaste  men  and  women.  As  Chrysostom  puts  it, 
when  it  was  seen  that  Christianity,  by  giving  a  settled 
principle  of  sufficient  power  to  counterbalance  the 
pleasures  of  sin,  was  able  to  impose  a  restraint  upon  a 
class  so  self-willed,  and  render  them  singularly  well- 
behaved,  then  their  masters,  however  unreasonable 
they  might  be,  were  likely  to  form  a  high  opinion  of 
the  doctrines  which  accomplished  this.  So  that  it  is 
neither  by  chance,  nor  without  reason,  that  the  Apostle 
singles  out  this  class  of  men :  since,  the  more  wicked 


ii.  9,  lo.]     THE  MORAL   CONDITION  OF  SLA  VES.  255 

they  are,  the  more  admirable  is  the  power  of  that 
preaching  which  reforms  them.  And  St.  Chrysostom 
goes  on  to  point  out  that  the  way  in  which  slaves  are 
to  endeavour  to  adorn  the  doctrine  of  God  is  by  culti- 
vating precisely  those  virtues  which  contribute  most 
to  their  masters'  comfort  and  interest, — submissiveness, 
gentleness,  meekness,  honesty,  truthfulness,  and  a 
faithful  discharge  of  all  duties.  What  a  testimony 
conduct  of  this  kind  would  be  to  the  power  and  beauty 
of  the  Gospel ;  and  a  testimony  all  the  more  powerful 
in  the  eyes  of  those  masters  who  became  conscious  that 
these  despised  Christian  slaves  were  living  better  lives 
than  their  owners  !  The  passionate  man,  who  found 
his  slave  always  gentle  and  submissive ;  the  inhuman 
and  ferocious  man,  who  found  his  slave  always  meek 
and  respectful ;  the  fraudulent  man  of  business,  who 
noticed  that  his  slave  never  pilfered  or  told  lies;  the 
sensualist,  who  observed  that  his  slave  was  never 
intemperate  and  always  shocked  at  immodesty; — all 
these,  even  if  they  were  not  induced  to  become  converts 
to  the  new  faith,  or  even  to  take  much  trouble  to 
understand  it,  would  at  least  at  times  feel  something  of 
respect,  if  not  of  awe  and  reverence,  for  a  creed  which 
produced  such  results.  Where  did  their  slaves  learn 
these  lofty  principles  ?  Whence  did  they  derive  the 
power  to  live  up  to  them  ? 

The  cases  in  which  masters  and  mistresses  were 
converted  through  the  conduct  of  their  own  slaves  were 
probably  by  no  means  rare.  It  was  by  the  gradual 
influence  of  numerous  Christian  lives,  rather  than  by 
organized  missionary  effort,  that  the  Gospel  spread 
during  the  first  ages  of  the  Church;  and  nowhere 
would  this  gradual  influence  make  itself  more  strongly 
and  permanently  felt  than  in  the  family  and  household. 


255  THE  EPISTLE  TO   TITUS, 

Some  slaves  then,  like  some  domestic  servants  now, 
stood  in  very  close  relations  with  their  masters  and 
mistresses  ;  and  the  opportunities  of  "  adorning  the 
doctrine  of  God  "  would  in  such  cases  be  frequent  and 
great.  Origen  implies  that  it  was  no  uncommon  thing 
for  families  to  be  converted  through  the  instrumentality 
of  the  slaves  (Migne,  Series  Grceca,  xi.  476,  483).  One 
of  the  grievous  moral  defects  of  that  most  immoral  age 
was  the  low  view  taken  of  the  position  of  women  in 
society.  Even  married  women  were  treated  with  but 
scant  respect.  And  as  the  marriage-tie  was  very 
commonly  regarded  as  an  irksome  restraint,  the  con- 
dition of  most  women,  even  among  the  free-born,  was 
degraded  in  the  extreme.  They  were  scarcely  ever 
looked  upon  as  the  social  equals  and  the  necessary 
complement  of  the  other  sex ;  and,  when  not  required 
to  minister  to  the  comforts  and  pleasures  of  the  men, 
were  often  left  to  the  society  of  slaves.  Untold  evil 
was  the  natural  result ;  but,  as  Christianity  spread, 
much  good  came  out  of  the  evil.  Christian  slaves 
sometimes  made  use  of  this  state  of  things  to  interest 
their  mistresses  in  the  teaching  of  the  Gospel ;  and 
when  the  mistress  was  converted,  other  conversions  in 
the  household  became  much  more  probable.  Another 
grievous  blot  on  the  domestic  life  of  the  time  was  the 
want  of  parental  affection.  Fathers  had  scarcely  any 
sense  of  responsibility  towards  their  children,  especially 
as  regards  their  moral  training.  Their  education 
generally  was  left  almost  entirely  to  slaves,  from  whom 
they  learnt  some  accomplishments  and  many  vices. 
They  too  often  became  adepts  in  wickedness  before 
they  had  ceased  to  be  children.  But  here  again  through 
the  instrumentality  of  the  Gospel  good  was  brought  out 
of  this  evil  also.     When  the  slaves,  who  had  the  care 


il.  9, 10.]     THE  MORAL  CONDITION  OF  SLA  VES.  257 

and  the  training  of  the  children,  were  Christians,  the 
morals  of  the  children  were  carefully  guarded ;  and  in 
many  cases  the  children,  when  they  came  to  years  of 
discretion,  embraced  Christianity. 

Nor  were  these  the  only  ways  in  which  the  most 
degraded  and  despised  class  in  the  society  of  that  age 
were  able  to  "  adorn  the  doctrine  of  God."  Slaves 
were  not  only  an  ornament  to  the  faith  by  their  lives ; 
they  adorned  it  also  by  their  deaths.  Not  a  few  slaves 
won  the  martyr's  crown.  Those  who  have  read  that 
most  precious  relic  of  early  Christian  literature,  the 
letter  of  the  Churches  of  Lyons  and  Vienne  to  the 
Churches  of  Asia  Minor  and  Phrygia,  will  not  need  to 
be  reminded  of  the  martyrdom  of  the  slave  Blandina 
with  her  mistress  in  the  terrible  persecution  in  Gaul 
under  Marcus  Aurelius  in  the  year  177.  Eusebius 
has  preserved  the  greater  portion  of  the  letter  at  the 
beginning  of  the  fifth  book  of  his  Ecclesiastical  History. 
Let  all  who  can  do  so  read  it,  if  not  in  the  original 
Greek,  at  least  in  a  translation.  It  is  an  authentic  and 
priceless  account  of  Christian  fortitude. 

What  slaves  could  do  then  we  all  of  us  can  do  now. 
We  can  prove  to  all  for  whom  and  with  whom  we  work 
that  we  really  do  believe  and  endeavour  to  live  up  to 
the  faith  that  we  profess.  By  the  lives  we  lead  we  can 
show  to  all  who  know  anything  of  us  that  we  are 
loyal  to  Christ.  By  avoiding  offence  in  word  or  in 
deed,  and  by  welcoming  opportunities  of  doing  good 
to  others,  we  can  make  His  principles  better  known. 
And  by  doing  all  this  brightly  and  cheerfully,  without 
ostentation  or  affectation  or  moroseness,  we  can  make 
His  principles  attractive.  Thus  we  also  can  ''adorn 
the  doctrine  of  God  in  all  things." 

*'  In  all  things."     That  all-embracing  addition  to  the 

17 


258  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

Apostolic  injunction  must  not  be  lost  sight  of.  There 
is  no  duty  so  humble,  no  occupation  so  trifling,  that  it 
cannot  be  made  into  an  opportunity  for  adorning  our 
religion.  *'  Whether  ye  eat,  or  drink,  or  whatsoever  ye 
do^  do  all  to  the  glory  of  God  "  (l  Cor.  x.  31). 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 

HOPE  AS  A  MOTIVE  POWER.— THE  PRESENT  HOPES 

OF  CHRISTIANS. 

"  For  the  grace  of  God  hath  appeared,  bringing  salvation  to  all 
men,  instructing  us,  to  the  intent  that,  denying  ungodliness  abid 
worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly  and  righteously  and  godly  in 
this  present  world  ;  looking  for  the  blessed  hope  and  appearing  of 
the  glory  of  cur  great  God  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ ;  who  gave  Him- 
self for  us,  that  He  might  redeem  us  from  all  iniquity,  and  purify  unto 
Himself  a  people  for  His  own  possession,  zealous  of  good  works. 
These  things  speak  and  exhort  and  reprove  with  all  authority.  Let 
no  man  despise  thee." — Titus  ii.  ii — 15. 

THERE  are  not  many  passages  in  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  which  treat  so  plainly  as  this  does  of 
doctrine.  As  a  rule  St.  Paul  assumes  that  his  delegates, 
Timothy  and  Titus,  are  well  instructed  (as  he  knew 
they  were)  in  the  details  of  the  Christian  faith,  and  he 
does  not  stay  even  to  remind  them  of  what  he  had 
frequently  taught  to  them  and  to  others  in  their  pre- 
sence. The  purpose  of  the  Epistles  is  to  give  practical 
rather  than  doctrinal  instruction ;  to  teach  Timothy 
and  Titus  how  to  shape  their  own  conduct,  and  what 
kind  of  conduct  they  are  chiefly  to  insist  upon  in  the 
different  classes  of  Christians  committed  to  their  charge. 
Here,  however,  and  in  the  next  chapter,  we  have 
marked  exceptions  to  this  method.  Yet  even  here  the 
exception  is  more  apparent  than  real ;  for  the  doctrinal 
statements  are  introduced,  not  as  truths  to  be  recognized 


26o  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS, 

and  believed  (it  is  taken  for  granted  that  they  are 
recognized  and  believed),  but  as  the  basis  of  the 
practical  exhortations  which  have  just  been  given.  It 
is  because  these  great  truths  have  been  revealed, 
because  life  is  so  real  and  so  important,  and  because 
eternity  is  so  certain,  that  Titus  is  to  exert  all  his 
influence  to  produce  the  best  kind  of  conduct  in  his 
flock,  whether  men  or  women,  old  or  young,  bond  or 
free. 

The  passage  before  us  might  almost  serve  as  a 
summary  of  St.  Paul's  teaching.  In  it  he  once  more 
insists  upon  the  inseparable  connexion  between  creed 
and  character,  doctrine  and  life,  and  intimates  the  close 
relations  between  the  past,  the  present,  and  the  future, 
in  the  Christian  scheme  of  salvation.  There  are  certain 
facts  in  the  past,  which  must  be  believed  ;  and  there  is 
a  kind  of  life  in  the  present,  which  must  be  lived  ;  and 
there  are  things  in  store  for  us  in  the  future,  which 
must  be  looked  for.  Thus  the  three  great  virtues  of 
faith,  charity,  and  hope  are  inculcated.  Two  Epiphanies 
or  appearances  of  Jesus  Christ  in  this  world  are  stated 
as  the  two  great  limits  of  the  Christian  dispensation. 
There  is  the  Epiphany  of  grace,  when  the  Christ 
appeared  in  humility,  bringing  salvation  and  instruction 
to  all  men  ;  and  there  is  the  Epiphany  of  glory,  when 
He  will  appear  again  in  power,  that  He  may  claim  as 
His  own  possession  the  people  whom  He  has  redeemed. 
And  between  these  two  there  is  the  Christian  life  with 
its  '^  blessed  hope,"  the  hope  of  the  Lord's  return  in 
glory  to  complete  the  kingdom  which  His  first  Advent 
began. 

Most  of  us  make  far  too  little  of  this  "  blessed  hope." 
It  is  of  incalculable  value  ;  first,  as  a  test  of  our  own 
sincerity  and   reality ;   and   secondly,  as   a   source   of 


ii.  II-I5.]  HOPE  AS  A   MOTIVE  POWER.  261 

Strength  to  carry  us  over  the  difficulties  and  disappoint- 
ments which  beset  our  daily  course. 

There  is  perhaps  no  more  certain  test  of  a  Christian's 
earnestness  than  the  question  whether  he  does,  or  does 
not,  look  forward  with  hope  and  longing  for  Christ's 
return.  Some  men  have  seriously  persuaded  them- 
selves that  there  is  no  such  thing  either  to  hope  for  or  to 
dread.  Others  prefer  not  to  think  about  it ;  they  know 
that  doubts  have  been  entertained  on  the  subject,  and 
as  the  topic  is  not  a  pleasant  one  to  them,  they  dismiss 
it  as  much  as  possible  from  their  minds,  with  the  wish 
that  the  doubts  about  there  being  any  return  of  Christ 
to  judgment  may  be  well-founded  ;  for  their  own  lives 
are  such  that  they  have  every  reason  to  desire  that 
there  may  be  no  judgment.  Others  again,  who  on  the 
whole  are  trying  to  lead  Christian  lives,  neverthelc  ss 
so  far  share  the  feelings  of  the  godless,  in  that  the 
thought  of  Christ's  return  (of  the  certainty  of  which 
they  are  fully  persuaded)  inspires  them  with  fear  rather 
than  with  joy.  This  is  especially  the  case  with  those 
who  are  kept  in  the  right  way  much  more  by  the  fear 
of  hell  than  by  the  love  of  God,  or  even  the  hope  of 
heaven.  They  believe  and  tremble.  They  believe  in 
God's  truth  and  justice  much  more  than  in  His  love 
and  mercy.  He  is  to  them  a  Master  and  Lord  to  be 
obeyed  and  feared,  much  more  than  a  God  and  Father 
to  be  adored  and  loved.  Consequently  their  work  is 
half-hearted,  and  their  life  servile,  as  must  always  be 
the  case  with  those  whose  chief  motive  is  fear  of  punish- 
ment. Hence  they  share  the  terrors  of  the  wicked, 
while  they  lose  their  share  of  the  joys  of  the  righteous. 
They  are  too  much  afraid  to  find  any  real  pleasure 
either  in  sin  or  in  good  works.  To  have  sinned  fills 
them  with  terror  at  the  thought  of  inevitable  punish- 


262  THE  EPISTLE  TO   TITUS. 

ment ;  and  to  have  done  what  is  right  fills  them  with 
no  joy,  because  they  have  so  little  love  and  so  little 
hope. 

Those  who  find  from  experience  that  the  thought 
of  Christ's  return  in  glory  is  one  on  which  they  seldom 
dwell,  even  if  it  be  not  positively  unwelcome,  may  be 
sure  that  there  is  something  defective  in  their  life. 
Either  they  are  conscious  of  shortcomings  which  they 
make  little  or  no  attempt  to  correct,  the  recollection 
of  which  becomes  intolerable  when  confronted  with 
the  thought  of  the  day  of  judgment  (and  this  shows 
that  there  is  a  great  lack  of  earnestness  in  their 
religious  life) ;  or  they  are  being  content  with  low 
motives  for  avoiding  iniquity  and  striving  after  right- 
eousness, and  thus  are  losing  a  real  source  of  strength 
to  help  them  in  their  efibrts.  No  doubt  there  are 
persons  over  whom  high  motives  have  little  influence, 

^  and  can  have  but  little  influence,  because  they  are  as 
yet  unable  to  appreciate  them.  But  no  one  in  watching 
over  either  his  own  soul  or  the  souls  of  others  can 
afford  to  be  content  with  such  a  state  of  things. 
Childish  things  must  be  put  away,  when  they  cease 
to  be  appropriate.  As  the  character  develops  under 
the  influence  of  lower  motives,  higher  motives  begin 
at  times  to  make  themselves  felt ;  and  these  must 
gradually  be  substituted  for  the  others.  And  when 
they  do  make  themselves  felt,  high  motives  are  much 
more  powerful  than  low  ones  ;  which  is  a  further  reason 
for  appealing  to  them  rather  than  to  the  others.  Not 
only  is  a  man,  who  is  capable  of  being  moved  both 

^-  by  the  fear  of  hell  and  by  the  love  of  God,  more 
influenced  by  the  love  than  by  the  fear ;  but  love  has 
more  power  over  his  will  than  fear  has  over  the  will 
of  one  who  cannot  be  influenced  by  love. 


ii.  ii-iS-]  HOPE  AS  A   MOTIVE  POWER.  263 

All  this  tends  to  show  how  much  is  lost  by  those 
who  make  no  effort  to  cultivate  in  their  minds  a  feeling 
of  joy  at  the  thought  of  "  the  appearing  of  the  glory 
of  our  great  God  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ."  They 
lose  a  great  source  of  strength  by  neglecting  to  cultivate 
what  would  be  a  powerful  motive  to  help  them  on  the 
right  way.  Nor  does  the  loss  end  here.  With  it  they 
lose  much  of  the  interest  which  they  would  otherwise 
take  in  all  that  helps  to  "accomplish  the  number  of 
God's  elect  and  to  hasten  His  kingdom."  Christians 
pray  daily,  and  perhaps  many  times  daily,  "  Thy  kingdom 
come."  But  how  few  realize  what  they  are  praying 
for !  How  few  really  long  that  their  prayer  may  be 
speedily  granted  !  How  few  take  a  keen  and  untiring 
interest  in  all  that  promotes  the  coming  of  the  kingdom  ! 
And  thus  again  motive  power  is  lost ;  for  if  we  had 
but  the  eyes  to  see,  and  the  heart  to  appreciate,  all 
that  is  going  on  round  about  us,  we  should  feel  that 
we  live,  as  compared  with  our  forefathers,  in  very 
encouraging  times. 

We  are  often  enough  told  that  Christianity  in  general, 
and  the  Church  of  England  in  particular,  is  at  the 
present  time  passing  through  a  great  crisis ;  that  this 
is  an  age  of  peculiar  dangers  and  difficulties ;  that  we 
live  in  times  of  unblushing  vice  and  uncompromising 
scepticism ;  and  that  the  immensity  of  our  social, 
commercial,  and  political  corruption  is  only  the  natural 
outcome  of  the  immensity  of  our  irreligion  and  unbelief 
These  things  may  be  true ;  and  there  is  no  earnest 
Christian  who  has  not  at  times  been  perplexed  and 
saddened  by  them.  But,  thank  God,  there  are  other 
things  which  are  equally  true,  and  which  ought  to  be 
equally  recognized  and  remembered.  If  the  present 
is  an  age  of  peculiar  dangers  and  boundless  irreligion, 


264  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

it   is    also   an    age    of    peculiar    encouragements    and 
boundless  hope. 

There  are  Christians  who  love  to  look  back  to  some 
period  in  the  history  of  the  Church,  which  they  have 
come  to  regard  as  a  sort  of  golden  age;  an  age  in 
which  communities  of  saintly  men  and  women  were 
ministered  to  by  a  still  more  saintly  clergy,  and  in 
which  the  Church  went  beautifully  on  its  way,  not 
altogether  free  from  persecutions,  which  were  perhaps 
necessary  for  its  perfection,  but  untroubled  by  doubts, 
or  dissensions,  or  heresies,  and  unstained  by  worldli- 
ness,  apostasy,  or  sloth.  So  far  as  the  experience  of 
the  present  writer  has  carried  him,  no  such  golden  age 
can  be  found  in  the  actual  history  of  the  Church. 

It  is  not  to  be  found  in  the  New  Testament,  either 
before  or  after  Pentecost. 

We  do  not  find  it,  where  we  might  have  expected  to 
find  it,  in  the  period  when  Christ  was  still  present  in 
the  flesh  as  the  Ruler  and  Instructor  of  His  Church. 
That  period  is  marked  by  the  ignorance  and  unbelief  of 
the  Apostles,  by  their  quarrels,  their  ambition  for  the 
first  places  in  an  earthly  kingdom,  their  intolerant  spirit, 
by  the  flight  of  all  of  them  in  the  hour  of  Christ's 
danger,  by  the  denials  of  St.  Peter,  by  the  treachery 
and  suicide  of  Judas.  Nor  do  we  find  it,  where  again 
we  might  have  expected  to  find  it,  in  the  age  immediately 
succeeding  the  completion  of  Christ's  work,  when  the 
Apostles,  newly  anointed  with  the  Spirit,  were  still 
alive  to  direct  and  foster  the  Church  which  He  had 
founded.  That  period  also  is  marred  by  many  dis- 
figuring marks.  Apostles  can  still  be  timeserving,  can 
still  quarrel  among  themselves  ;  and  they  also  experience 
what  it  is  to  be  forsaken  and  opposed  by  their  own 
disciples.      Their  converts,  as  soon  as  the  Apostle  who 


ii.ii-i5.]  HOPE  AS  A  MOTIVE  POWER,  265 

established  them  in  the  faith  is  withdrawn,  and  sometimes 
even  while  he  is  still  with  them,  become  guilty  of  the 
gravest  errors  in  conduct  and  belief.  Witness  the  mon- 
strous disorders  in  the  Church  of  Corinth,  the  fickleness 
of  the  Galatian  converts,  the  unchristian  asceticism  of  the 
Colossian  heretics,  the  studied  immorality  of  those  of 
Ephesus.  The  Church  which  was  presided  over  by  St. 
Timothy  was  the  Church  of  Alexander,  Hymenaeus,  and 
Philetus,  who  removed  the  very  corner-stone  of  the  faith 
by  denying  the  Resurrection  ;  and  the  Churches  which 
were  presided  over  by  St.  John  contained  the  Nico- 
laitans,  condemned  as  hateful  by  Jesus  Christ,  and 
Diotrephes,  who  repudiated  the  Apostle  and  excom- 
municated those  who  received  the  Apostle's  messengers. 
And  there  is  much  more  of  the  same  sort,  as  the 
Pastoral  Epistles  show  us,  proving  that  what  comes  to 
us  at  first  as  a  sad  surprise  is  of  still  sadder  frequency, 
and  that  the  Apostolic  age  had  defects  and  stains  at 
at  least  as  serious  as  those  which  deface  our  own. 

The  failure  to  find  any  golden  age  in  either  of  these 
two  divisions  of  the  period  covered  by  the  New  Testa- 
ment ought  to  put  us  on  our  guard  against  expecting  to 
find  it  in  any  subsequent  period.  And  it  would  not  be 
difficult  to  take  each  of  the  epochs  in  the  history  of  the 
Church  which  have  been  selected  as  specially  bright 
and  perfect,  and  show  that  in  every  case,  directly  we 
pass  through  the  hazy  glow,  which  the  imagination  of 
later  writers  has  thrown  around  such  periods,  and  get 
down  to  solid  facts,  then,  either  the  brightness  and 
perfection  are  found  to  be  illusory,  or  they  are  counter- 
balanced by  many  dark  spots  and  disorders.  The  age 
of  the  martyrs  is  the  age  of  the  lapsed ;  the  ages  of 
faith  are  the  ages  of  fraud  ;  and  the  ages  of  great  success 
are  the  ages  of  great  corruption.     In  the  first  centuries 


266  THE  EPISTLE   TO  TITUS. 


increase  of  numbers  was  marked  by  increase  of  heresies 
and  schisms ;  in  the  middle  ages,  increase  of  power  by- 
increase  of  pride.  A  fair  comparison  of  the  period  in 
which  our  own  lot  has  been  cast  with  any  previous 
period  in  the  history  of  the  Church  will  never  lead  to 
any  just  feeling  of  discouragement.  Indeed  it  may 
reasonably  be  contended  that  at  no  era  since  Christianity 
was  first  founded  have  its  prospects  been  so  bright  as 
at  the  present  time. 

Let  us  look  at  the  contest  between  the  Gospel  and 
heathenism, — that  great  contest  which  has  been  going 
on  since  "  the  grace  of  God  appeared  bringing  salvation 
to  all  men/'  and  which  is  to  continue  until  "  the 
appearing  of  the  glory  of  our  great  God  and  Saviour." 
Was  there  ever  a  time  when  missions  were  more 
numerous  or  better  organized,  and  when  missionaries 
were  as  a  rule  better  instructed,  better  equipped,  or 
more  devoted  ?  And  although  it  is  impossible  to  form 
a  correct  estimate  on  such  a  subject,  because  some  of 
the  most  important  data  are  beyond  our  reach,  yet  it 
may  be  doubted  whether  there  ever  was  a  time  when 
missions  achieved  more  solid  success.  The  enormous 
growth  of  the  colonial  and  missionary  episcopate  during 
the  last  hundred  years  is  at  any  rate  one  great  fact 
which  represents  and  guarantees  a  great  deal.  Until 
1787  there  was  not  a  single  episcopal  see  of  the  Anglican 
communion  in  any  of  the  colonies  or  settlements  of  the 
British  Empire;  still  less  was  there  a  single  missionary 
bishop.  And  now,  as  the  Lambeth  Conferences  remind 
us,  these  colonial  and  missionary  bishops  are  not  far 
short  of  a  hundred,  and  are  always  increasing.* 

*  Including  the  English  and  American  bishops,  invitations  to  two 
hundred  and  nine  prelates  were  issued  for  the  Lambeth  Conference  in 
1888. 


ii.  II-I5.]  HOPE  AS  A  MOTIl^E  POWER.  267 

Or  let  us  look  at  the  relations  between  the  great 
Churches  into  which  Christendom  is  unhappily  divided. 
Was  there  ever  a  period  at  which  there  was  less 
bitterness,  or  more  earnest  and  wide-spread  desire  for 
the  restoration  of  unity  ?  And  the  increased  desire  for 
reunion  comes  hand  in  hand  with  an  increase  of  the 
conditions  which  would  render  reunion  possible.  Two 
things  are  absolutely  indispensable  for  a  successful 
attempt  in  this  direction.  First,  a  large  measure 
of  culture  and  learning,  especially  among  the  clergy  of 
the  divided  Churches ;  and  secondly,  inteUigent  religious 
zeal.  Ignorant  controversiahsts  cannot  distinguish 
between  important  and  unimportant  differences,  and 
thus  aggravate  rather  than  smo  th  difficulties.  And 
without  religious  earnestness  the  attempt  to  heal 
differences  ends  in  indifferentism.  Both  these  indis- 
pensable elements  are  increasing,  at  any  rate  in  the 
Anglican  and  in  the  Eastern  Churches :  and  thus 
reunion,  which  "must  be  possible,  because  it  is  a 
duty,"  is  becoming  not  only  a  desire  but  a  hope. 

Let  us  look  again  at  our  own  Church ;  at  its 
abundant  machinery  for  every  kind  of  beneficent  object; 
at  the  beautiful  work  which  is  being  done  in  a  quiet 
and  simple  way  by  numbers  of  Christian  men  and 
women  in  thousands  of  parishes ;  at  the  increase  in 
services,  in  confirmations,  in  communions ;  at  the 
princely  offerings  of  many  of  the  wealthy  laity ;  at  the 
humble  offerings — equally  princely  in  God's  sight — ol 
many  of  the  poor.  Can  we  point  to  a  time  when  party 
feeling  (bad  as  it  still  is)  was  less  rancorous,  when 
parishes  were  better  worked,  when  the  clergy  were 
better  educated  or  more  self-sacrificing,  when  the 
people  were  more  responsive  to  what  is  being  done  for 
them? 


268  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TTl^US. 

The  very  possibility  of  seriously  raising  such 
questions  as  these  is  in  itself  a  reason  for  taking 
courage,  even  if  we  cannot  answer  all  of  them  in  the 
way  that  would  please  us  most.  There  are  at  any  rate 
good  grounds  for  hoping  that  much  is  being  done  for 
the  advancement  of  Christ's  dominion,  and  that  the 
prayer  "  Thy  kingdom  come "  is  being  answered  day 
by  day.  If  we  could  but  convince  ourselves  more 
thoroughly  of  the  truth  of  all  this,  we  should  work 
more  hopefully  and  more  earnestly.  More  hopefully, 
because  we  should  be  working  with  a  consciousness  of 
being  successful  and  making  progress,  with  a  conviction 
that  we  are  on  the  winning  side.  And  more  earnestly, 
not  merely  because  hope  makes  work  more  earnest  and 
thorough,  but  also  because  we  should  have  an  increased 
sense  of  responsibility :  we  should  fear  lest  through 
any  sloth  or  negligence  on  our  part  such  bright 
prospects  should  be  marred.  The  expectation  of  defeat 
makes  some  men  strive  all  the  more  heroically ;  but 
most  men  it  paralyses.  In  our  Christian  warfare  we 
certainly  need  hope  to  carry  us  onward  to  victory. 

"The  appearing  of  the  glory  of  our  great  God  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ."  Among  the  foolish  charges 
which  have  been  brought  against  the  Revisers  is  that 
of  favouring  Arian  tendencies  by  blurring  those  texts 
which  teach  the  Divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  present 
passage  would  be  a  sufficient  answer  to  such  a  charge. 
In  the  A.V.  we  have  "  the  glorious  appearing  of  the 
great  God,  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,"  where  both 
the  wording  and  the  comma  make  it  clear  that  ^'  the 
great  God"  means  the  Father  and  not  our  Saviour. 
The  Revisers,  by  omitting  the  comma,  for  which  there 
is  no  authority  in  the  original,  and  by  placing  the 
"our"    before    both    substantives,    have    given    their 


it.  1 1- 1 5-]  HOPE  AS  A  MOTIVE  POWER.  269 

authority  to  the  view  that  St.  Paul  means  both  ''great 
God  "  and  "  Saviour  "  to  apply  to  Jesus  Christ.  It  is 
not  any  Epiphany  of  the  Father  which  is  in  his  mind, 
but  the  "  Epiphany  of  the  glory  of  our  great  God  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

The  wording  of  the  Greek  is  such  that  absolute 
certainty  is  not  attainable ;  but  the  context,  the 
collocation  of  the  words,  the  use  of  the  word  "Epiphany," 
and  the  omssion  of  the  article  before  "  Saviour " 
{iiTi^aveiav  Tr}9  ^o^t)  tov  fieyaXov  ©€0V  kol  aa)Tr]po<; 
7)fjL(ov '  I.  X.),  all  seem  to  favour  the  Revisers'  rendering. 
And,  if  it  be  adopted,  we  have  here  one  of  the  plainest 
and  most  direct  statements  of  the  Divinity  of  Christ  to 
be  found  in  Scripture.  As  such  it  was  employed  in  the 
Arian  controversy,  although  Ambrose  seems  to  have 
understood  the  passage  as  referring  to  the  Father  and 
Christ,  and  not  to  Christ  alone.  The  force  of  what 
follows  is  enhanced,  if  the  Revisers'  rendering,  which 
is  the  strictly  grammatical  rendering,  is  maintained.  It 
is  as  being  "  our  great  God  "  that  He  gave  Himself  for 
us,  that  He  might  "redeem  us  from  all  iniquity;"  and 
it  was  because  He  was  God  as  well  as  man,  that  what 
was  uttered  as  a  bitter  taunt  was  really  a  glorious 
truth ; — ''  He  saved  others ;  Himself  He  cannot  save." 
It  was  morally  impossible  that  the  Divine  Son  should 
turn  back  from  making  us  "  a  people  for  His  own 
possession."  Let  us  strengthen  ourselves  in  the  hope 
that  our  efforts  to  fulfil  this  gracious  purpose  are  never 
thrown  away. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

THE  DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE  TO  AUTHORITY,  WITH 
ITS  LIMITS;  THE  DUTY  OF  COURTESY  WITHOUT 
LIMITS. 

"  Put  them  in  mind  to  be  in  subjection  to  rulers,  to  authorities,  to 
be  obedient,  to  be  ready  unto  every  good  work,  to  speak  evil  of  no 
man,  not  to  be  contentious,  to  be  gentle,  showing  all  meekness  toward 
all  men.  For  we  also  were  aforetime  foolish,  disobedient,  deceived, 
serving  divers  lusts  and  pleasures,  living  in  malice  and  envy,  hateful, 
hating  one  another" — Titus  iii.  I — ^3. 

ST.  PAUL;  having  in  the  previous  chapter  sketched 
the  special  duties  which  Titus  is  to  inculcate  upon 
different  classes  of  Christians, — aged  men  and  aged 
women,  young  women,  young  men,  and  slaves, — now 
passes  on  to  point  out  what  must  be  impressed  upon 
all  Christians  alike,  especially  as  regards  their  conduct 
towards  those  who  are  in  authority  and  who  are  not 
Christians. 

Here  he  is  on  delicate  ground.  The  Cretans  are 
said  to  have  been  a  turbulent  race,  or  rather  a  group  of 
turbulent  races;  neither  peaceable  among  themselves, 
nor  very  patient  of  foreign  dominion  :  and  the  Roman 
rule  had  been  estabhshed  there  for  less  than  a  century 
and  a  half.  Previous  to  their  conquest  by  Metellus  in 
B.C.  67,  they  had  been  accustomed  to  democratic  forms 
of  government,  and  therefore  would  be  likely  to  feel  the 
change  to  the  Roman  yoke  all  the  more  acutely.     As 


iii.  1-3.]    DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE   TO  AUTHORITY.         271 

our  own  experiences  in  a  neighbouring  island  have 
taught  us,  people  who  have  been  allowed  to  misgovern 
themselves,  and  to  fight  among  themselves,  for  many 
generations,  do  not  readily  give  a  welcome  to  a  power 
which  deprives  them  of  these  liberties,  even  when  it 
offers  in  exchange  for  them  the  solid  but  prosaic  advan- 
tages of  peace  and  security.  Besides  this,  there  was 
in  Crete  a  strong  mixture  of  Jews,  whose  rebellious 
propensities  seemed  to  be  unquenchable.  Nor  was 
this  all.  Within  the  Church  itself  the  spirit  of  anarchy 
had  displayed  itself :  partly  because,  as  in  the  Churches 
of  Corinth  and  Galatia,  the  characteristic  faults  of  the 
people  still  continued  to  show  themselves  after  the 
acceptance  of  Christianity ;  partly  because,  as  every- 
where in  the  Churches  of  that  age,  the  contests  between 
Jewish  and  Gentile  converts  were  always  producing 
disorder.  This  appears  in  the  first  chapter  of  our 
Epistle,  in  which  the  Apostle  states  that  "  there  are 
many  unruly  men,  .  .  .  specially  they  of  the  circumci- 
sion," and  in  which  he  finds  it  necessary  to  make  it  a 
qualification  for  the  office  of  bishop  or  overseer,  that 
the  persons  appointed  should  be  such  as  "are  not 
accused  of  riot  or  are  unruly."  Besides  which,  as  we 
learn  from  numerous  sources  in  the  New  Testament, 
there  was  in  various  quarters  a  tendency  to  gross  mis- 
conceptions respecting  Christian  liberty.  Through 
Gnostic  and  other  antinomian  influences  there  was  a 
disposition  in  many  minds  to  translate  liberty  into 
license,  and  to  suppose  that  the  Christian  was  above 
the  distinctions  of  the  moral  law,  which  for  him  had  no 
meaning.  Lastly,  there  were  probably  some  earnest 
Christians,  who,  without  going  to  any  of  these  disas- 
trous extremes,  or  sympathi'zing  with  the  factious  and 
seditious  spirit  of  their  fellow-countrymen,  nevertheless 


211  THE  EPISTLE  TO   TITUS. 

had  serious  doubts  as  to  whether  Christians  were  under 
any  obligation  to  obey  a  pagan  magistrate,  and  perhaps 
were  inclined  to  believe  that  it  was  their  duty  to  dis- 
obey him. 

For  all  these  reasons  St.  Paul  must  have  known  that 
he  was  charging  Titus  to  give  instructions,  which 
would  be  very  unwelcome  to  a  large  number  of  Cretan 
converts,  when  he  told  him  to  '*  put  them  in  mind  to 
be  in  subjection  to  rulers  and  authorities,  and  to  be 
obedient."  But  it  was  the  very  fact  that  the  instruc- 
tions would  be  unwelcome  to  many,  that  made  it  so 
necessary  that  they  should  be  given.  Both  for  the 
internal  well-being  of  the  Church,  and  for  the  mainten- 
ance of  right  relations  with  the  State,  it  was  imperative 
that  the  principle  of  obedience  to  authority,  whether 
ecclesiastical  or  civil,  should  be  upheld.  There  must 
be  peace,  and  there  must  be  liberty  :  but  there  could 
be  neither  the  one  nor  the  other  without  a  respect  for 
law  and  for  those  who  have  to  administer  it. 

The  Apostle  does  not  here  argue  the  case.  He 
lays  down  certain  positions  as  indisputable.  The 
loyal  Christian  must  submit  himself  to  those  who 
are  placed  over  him  ;  he  must  render  Obedience  to 
existing  authorities.  There  is  one  obvious  limit  to 
this  which  he  indicates  by  a  single  word  to  be  noticed 
hereafter,  but  with  that  one  qualification  the  duty 
of  obedience  is  imperative  and  absolute.  Jew  and 
Gentile  Christian  alike  must  obey  the  laws,  not  only 
of  the  Church,  as  administered  by  its  overseers,  but 
also  of  the  State,  as  administered  by  the  magistrates, 
even  though  the  State  be  a  heathen  power  and 
the  magistrate  an  idolater.  The  reason  why  St.  Paul 
does  not  argue  the  matter  is  obvious.  He  is  not 
writing  to  those  who  are  likely  to  dispute  or  disobey 


ill.  I-3-]    DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE  TO  AUTHORITY.  '      273 

these  injunctions,  but  to  one  who  has  to  see  that  they 
are  obeyed.  His  object  is  not  to  prove  the  excellence 
of  the  rules  which  he  lays  down,  but  to  advise  Titus 
as  to  what  rules  are  to  be  most  insisted  upon.  Titus 
was  well  aware  of  the  principles  upon  which  these 
rules  were  based  and  of  the  arguments  by  which 
the  Apostle  was  accustomed  to  defend  them.  He  does 
not  need  information  on  that  point.  What  the  Apostle 
thinks  may  be  necessary  for  his  guidance  is  a  clear 
intimation  of  those  practical  lessons  of  which  the 
Cretans  needed  most  to  be  reminded.  It  was  quite 
possible  that  Titus  might  have  taken  the  view  that 
the  question  about  obedience  to  existing  authorities 
was  a  burning  one,  and  that  it  would  be  better  for 
the  present  to  say  as  little  about  it  as  possible.  To 
object,  therefore,  that  these  directions  in  the  second 
and  third  chapters  of  this  Epistle  are  unworthy  of 
St.  Paul,  and  consequently  not  written  by  him, 
because  they  contain  nothing  which  might  serve  as 
a  sufficient  refutation  of  the  adversaries,  is  to  beat 
the  air  without  effect.  They  contain  nothing  calcu- 
lated to  serve  as  a  refutation  of  the  adversaries, 
because  the  Apostle  writes  with  no  intention  of  re- 
futing opponents,  but  in  order  to  give  practical 
instructions  to  his  delegate. 

But  although  the  Apostle  does  not  here  argue  the 
case,  we  are  not  left  in  ignorance  as  to  the  principles 
upon  which  he  based  the  rules  here  laid  down  so 
emphatically.  The  thirteenth  chapter  of  the  Epistle 
to  the  Romans  is  quite  clear  on  that  point.  "There 
is  no  power  but  of  God  ;  and  the  powers  that  be 
are  ordained  of  God.  Therefore  he  that  resisteth 
the  power,  withstandeth  the  ordinance  of  God." 
That   is   the   kernel   of  the  whole  matter.     The   fact 

18 


2^4  THE  kPISTLE   TO   TITt/S. 

that  a  few  rule  over  the  many  is  not  to  be  traced  to 
a  world-wide  usurpation  of  the  rights  of  the  simple 
and  the  weak  by  the  selfishness  of  the  crafty  and 
the  strong.  That  theory  may  explain  the  terrorism 
of  a  bully,  or  of  a  band  of  brigands,  or  of  a  secret 
society  ;  it  is  no  explanation  of  the  universal  relations 
between  governors  and  the  governed.  Nor  is  it  the 
result  of  a  primeval  "  social  compact,"  in  which  the 
weak  voluntarily  surrendered  some  of  their  rights  in 
order  to  have  the  advantage  of  the  protection  of  the 
strong :  that  theory  is  pure  fiction,  and  finds  no 
support  either  in  the  facts  of  man's  nature,  or  in 
the  relics  of  primitive  society,  or  in  the  records  of 
the  past.  The  one  explanation  which  is  at  once 
both  adequate  and  true,  is,  that  all  authority  is  of 
Divine  origin.  This  was  the  declaration  of  the  Fore- 
runner, when  his  disciples  complained  to  him  of  the 
influence  which  Jesus  exercised  over  those  who  came 
in  contact  with  His  teaching:  "A  man  can  receive 
nothing,  except  it  have  been  given  him  from  heaven  " 
(John  iii.  27).  This  was  the  declaration  of  the  Christ, 
when  the  Roman  Procurator  pointed  out  to  Him  that 
he  had  power  of  fife  and  death  over  Him:  ''Thou 
wouldest  have  no  power  against  Me,  except  it  were 
given  thee  from  above"  (John  xix.  ii).  The  power 
of  the  Redeemer  over  the  minds  of  men  and  the 
power  of  a  heathen  governor  over  the  bodies  of  men 
have  one  and  the  same  source, — Almighty  God. 
Christ  declared  His  innocence  and  asserted  His  claims ; 
but  He  made  no  protest  against  being  tried  by  a 
pagan  official,  who  represented  the  power  that  had 
deprived  the  Jewish  nation  of  its  liberties,  because  he 
also  represented  the  principle  of  law  and  order,  and 
as  such  was  the  representative  of  God  Himself. 


iii.  1-3.]    DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE   TO  AUTHORITY.         275 

St  Paul,  therefore,  is  doing  no  more  than  restating 
what  the  Lord  had  already  taught  both  by  word  and 
example.  Christians  must  show  submission  to  rulers 
and  constituted  authorities,  and  must  yield  ready 
obedience  to  magistrates,  even  when  they  are  heathen. 
As  heathen  they  were  no  doubt  rebels  against  God, 
however  little  they  might  be  aware  of  the  fact.  But  as 
magistrates  they  were  His  delegates,  however  Httle  they 
were  aware  of  the  fact.  The  Christian  is  aware  of  both 
facts;  and  he  must  not  suppose  that  the  one  cancels 
the  other.  The  magistrate  still  remain's  God's  delegate, 
however  inconsistent  his  own  life  may  be  with  such  a 
position.  Therefore  it  is  not  only  allowable  for  Chris- 
tians to  obey  him ;  they  must  make  it  a  matter  of 
conscience  to  do  so  :  and  the  history  of  the  Church 
throughout  the  eras  of  persecution  shows  how  greatly 
such  teaching  was  needed.  Whatever  may  have  been 
the  case  when  St.  Paul  wrote  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  we  may  safely  maintain  that  persecution  had 
already  taken  place  when  he  wrote  these  instructions  to 
Titus.  Not  that  he  seems  to  have  a  persecuting  power 
in  his  mind,  when  he  enjoins  simple  obedience  to 
existing  authority ;  but  he  writes  with  full  knowledge 
of  the  extreme  cases  that  might  occur.  A  moralist 
who  could  insist  upon  the  duty  of  submission  to  rulers, 
when  a  Nero  had  been  on  the  throne  for  twelve  or  four- 
teen years,  was  certainly  not  one  who  could  be  ignorant 
of  what  his  principles  involved.  Nor  could  it  be  said 
that  the  evils  of  Nero's  insolent  despotism  were 
counteracted  by  the  excellence  of  his  subordinates. 
The  infamous  Tigellinus  was  Praetorian  Prefect  and 
the  Emperor's  chief  adviser.  Helius,  who  acted  as 
governor  of  Italy  during  the  Emperor's  absence  in 
Greece,  was  in  character  a  second  Nero.    And  Gessius 


276  THE  EPISTLE   TO  TITUS. 

Florus,  one  of  Pilate's  successors  as  Procurator  of 
Judaea,  was  so  shameless  in  his  enormities,  that  the 
Jews  regretted  the  departure  of  his  predecessor  Albinus, 
although  he  also  had  mercilessly  oppressed  them.  But 
all  these  facts,  together  with  many  more  of  the  same 
kind,  and  some  also  of  an  opposite  character,  were 
beside  the  question.  Christians  were  not  to  concern 
themselves  with  discussing  whether  rulers  governed 
well  or  ill,  or  whether  their  private  lives  were  good  or 
bad.  The  one  fact  which  concerned  them  was  that 
the  rulers  were  there  to  administer  the  law,  and  as 
such  must  be  respected  and  obeyed.  The  conscience 
of  Christians  and  the  experiences  of  politicians,  whether 
rulers  or  ruled,  throughout  all  the  subsequent  ages 
have  ratified  the  wisdom  of  St.  Paul's  injunctions ;  and 
not  only  their  wisdom  but  their  profound  morality. 
Renan  says  with  truth,  but  with  a  great  deal  less  than 
the  whole  truth,  that  "  Paul  had  too  much  tact  to  be 
a  preacher  of  sedition :  he  wished  that  the  name  of 
Christian  should  stand  well,  and  that  a  Christian  should 
be  a  man  of  order,  on  good  terms  with  the  police,  and 
of  good  repute  in  the  eyes  of  the  pagans  "  {St.  Paul^ 
p.  477).  The  criticism  which  resolves  a  profound 
moral  principle  into  a  mere  question  of  tact  is  worthy 
of  the  critic  who  makes  it.  Certainly  St.  Paul  was 
far-sighted  enough  to  see  that  frequent  collisions 
between  Christians  and  the  recognized  administrators 
of  the  law  would  be  no  good  thing  for  Christianity  : 
but  it  was  not  because  he  believed  obedience  to  be  the 
best  policy  that  he  charged  Titus  to  insist  upon  it. 

It  is  of  the  very  essence  of  a  ruler  that  he  is  "not 
a  terror  to  the  good  work,  but  to  the  evil :  ...  for  he 
is  a  minister  of  God  to  thee  for  good,  ...  an  avenger 
for  wrath  to  him  that  doeth  evil."     It  is  quite  possible 


iii.  1-3.]    DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE   TO  AUTHORITY.         277 


that  the  law  which  he  administers  is  unjust,  or  that  he 
administers  it  in  such  a  way  as  to  make  it  work  in- 
justice, so  that  good  deeds  are  punished  and  evil  deeds 
are  rewarded.  But  nowhere  is  good  punished  as  good, 
or  evil  rewarded  as  evil.  When  Naboth  was  judicially 
murdered  to  gratify  Jezebel,  it  was  on  the  assumption 
that  he  was  a  blasphemer  and  a  rebel ;  and  when  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  was  condemned  to  death  by  the  Sanhedrin 
and  by  the  Procurator,  it  was  on  the  assumption  that 
he  was  guilty  of  similar  crimes.  So  also  with  all  the 
monstrous  and  iniquitous  laws  which  have  been  made 
against  Christianity  and  Christians.  The  persecuting 
edict  "  cast  out  their  name  as  evil^ 

It  was  because  men  believed,  or  professed  to  believe, 
that  Christians  were  grievous  offenders  or  dangerous 
citizens,  that  they  brought  them  before  the  magistrates. 
And  the  same  holds  good  of  the  religious  persecutions 
of  which  Christians  have  been  guilty  against  other 
Christians.  Nowhere  can  we  point  to  a  case  in  which 
a  person  has  been  condemned  for  having  been  virtuous, 
or  for  having  failed  to  commit  a  crime.  Many  have 
been  condemned  for  what  was  really  meritorious,  or 
for  refusing  to  do  what  was  really  v/icked  ;  but  in  all 
such  cases  the  meritorious  conduct  and  the  wicked 
conduct  were  held  to  be  of  exactly  the  opposite  character 
by  the  representatives  of  the  law.  Legally  constituted 
aut'iority,  therefore,  is  always  by  profession,  and  gene- 
rally in  fact  also,  a  terror  to  the  evil  and  a  supporter 
of  the  good.  It  is  charged  with  the  all-important  duty 
of  upholding  right  and  punishing  wrong  in  human 
conduct,  a  duty  which  it  never  disowns.  For  even  when 
through  blindness  or  perversity  it  upholds  what  is 
wrong  or  punishes  what  is  right,  it  professes  to  be 
doing  the  opposite,     Therefore   to  rebel  against   it   is 


278  THE  EPISTLE  TO  TITUS. 

to  rebel  against  the  principle  of  moral  government ;  it 
is  a  revolt  against  that  principle  which  reflects  and 
represents,  and  that  by  His  ordinance,  the  moral  govern- 
ment of  Almighty  God. 

St.  Paul  assumes  that  rulers  aim  at  what  is  just  and 
right.  The  Christian  is  "  to  be  ready  unto  every  good 
work  "  :  and,  although  the  words  are  no  doubt  intended 
to  have  a  general  meaning  as  well,  yet  the  context 
suggests  that  their  primary  meaning  in  this  place  is 
that  Christians  are  always,  not  only  to  be  obedient  to 
rulers  and  magistrates,  but  to  be  ready  to  support 
and  assist  them  in  any  good  work :  the  presumption 
being  that  what  the  authorities  direct  is  good.  But, 
without  perhaps  having  this  object  in  view,  the  Apostle 
here  indirectly  intimates  the  limits  to  a  Christian's 
obedience  and  support.  They  are  to  be  given  to  further 
*'  every  good  work " :  they  cannot  of  course  be  given 
to  further  what  is  evil.  What  then  must  a  Christian 
do  when  lawful  authority  requires  him  to  do  what  he 
knows  to  be  wrong  ?  Is  he  to  rebel  ?  to  stir  up  a 
revolt  against  those  who  make  this  demand  ?  No,  he 
is  still  "  to  be  in  subjection  to  rulers  " :  that  is,  he  must 
disobey  and  quietly  take  the  consequences.  He  owes  it 
to  his  conscience  to  refuse  to  do  what  it  condemns  : 
but  he  also  owes  it  to  the  representative  of  Divine  law 
and  order  to  abstain  from  shaking  its  authority.  It 
has  the  power  to  give  commands  and  the  right  to 
punish  disobedience,  and  he  has  no  right  to  refuse  both 
obedience  and  punishment.  To  disobey  and  submis- 
sively take  the  consequences  of  disobedience  is  his  plain 
duty  in  so  painful  a  case.  In  this  wa}',  and  in  this  way 
onlyy  will  lo3^alty  to  conscience  and  loyalty  to  authority 
both  alike  be  preserv^ed.  In  this  way,  and  in  this  way 
best  (as  history  has  again  and  again  shown),  is  the 


iii.i-3-]    DUl'Y  OF  OBEDIENCE   TO  AUTHORITY,         279 

reformation  of  unjust  laws  effected.  The  moral  sense 
of  society  is  far  more  impressed  by  the  man  who 
disobeys  for  conscience'  sake  and  unresistingly  goes  to 
prison  or  mounts  the  scaffold  for  his  disobedience,  than 
by  him  who  violently  resists  all  attempts  to  punish  him 
and  stirs  up  rebellion  against  the  authority  which  he 
cannot  conscientiously  obey.  Rebellion  may  succeed 
in  redressing  injustice,  but  at  a  cost  which  is  likely  to 
be  more  grievous  than  the  injustice  which  it  redresses. 
Conscientious  disobedience,  accompanied  by  loyal  sub- 
mission to  the  penalty  of  disobedience,  is  sure  to 
succeed  in  reforming  unjust  laws,  and  that  without  any 
cost  to  counterbalance  the  good  thus  gained. 

Having  thus  trenchantly  determined  the  duty  of 
believers  towards  rulers  and  magistrates,  St.  Paul 
passes  on  to  sketch  their  proper  attitude  towards  other 
members  of  society.  And  just  as  in  speaking  of 
conduct  towards  authorities  he  evidently  has  in  his 
mind  the  fact  that  most  authorities  are  unbelievers,  so 
in  speaking  of  conduct  in  society  he  evidently  is  think- 
ing of  a  state  of  society  in  which  many  of  its  members 
are  unbelievers.  What  kind  of  conduct  will  Titus 
have  to  insist  upon  as  befitting  a  Christian  ?  *'  To 
speak  evil  of  no  man,  not  to  be  contentious,  to  be 
gentle,  showing  all  meekness  towards  all  men." 

It  would  be  difficult  to  point  to  a  precept  which  is 
more  habitually  violated  by  Christians  at  the  present 
day,  and  therefore  more  worthy  of  being  constantly 
brought  to  the  front  and  urged  upon  their  consideration. 
There  are  plenty  of  precepts  both  of  the  Old  and  of 
the  New  Testament,  which  are  habitually  violated  by 
the  godless  and  irreligious,  by  those  who,  while  bearing 
the  name  of  Christian,  scarcely  make  even  a  pretence 
of  endeavouring  to  live  Christian  lives.     But  here  we 


2^o  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS, 

have  a  group  of  precepts,  which  a  large  number,  not 
only  of  those  who  profess  to  live  soberly  and  righteously, 
but  of  those  who  do  indeed  in  other  respects  live  as 
Christians  should,  consent  to  forget  or  ignore.  "To 
speak  evil  of  no  man ;  not  to  be  contentious  ;  to  be 
gentle,  showing  all  meekness  towards  all  men."  Let 
us  consider  calmly  what  such  words  as  these  really 
mean;  and  then  let  us  consider  what  we  constantly 
meet  with  in  the  controversial  writing,  and  still  more 
in  the  controversial  speaking,  of  the  present  day. 
Consider  the  tone  of  our  party  newspapers,  and 
especially  of  our  religious  newspapers,  on  the  burning 
questions  of  the  hour  and  on  the  men  who  take  a 
leading  part  in  them.  Read  what  a  High  Church  paper 
says  of  a  Low  Church  Bishop,  or  what  a  Low  Church 
paper  says  of  a  High  Church  Bishop,  and  measure  it 
by  the  injunction  "to  speak  evil  of  no  man."  Or  again, 
read  what  some  of  the  organs  of  Dissent  allow  them- 
selves to  say  respecting  the  clergy  of  the  Established 
Church,  or  what  some  Church  Defence  orators  have 
allowed  themselves  to  say  respecting  Liberationists, 
and  measure  it  by  the  injunctions  "not  to  be  conten- 
tious, to  be  gentle,  showing  all  meekness  towards  all 
men."  It  is  sometimes  necessary  to  speak  out  and  call 
attention  to  real  or  suspected  evils  ;  although  not  nearly 
so  frequently  as  we  like  to  think.  But  it  is  never 
necessary  to  throw  mud  and  deal  in  personal  abuse. 

Moreover,  it  is  very  unbecoming  to  do  so.  It  is 
doubly  unbecoming,  as  St.  Paul  reminds  us.  First, 
such  conduct  is  utterly  un-Christian.  Secondly,  it  is 
very  much  out  of  place  in  those  who  before  now  have 
been  guilty  of  quite  as  grave  faults  as  those  for  which 
we  now  abuse  others.  We  are  just  the  persons  who 
ought  to  remember,   because  we  know  from  personal 


iii.  1-3.]    DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE  TO  AUTHORITY.         281 

experience,  how  much  the  grace  of  God  can  effect.  If 
we  have  by  His  mercy  been  brought  out  of  the  sins 
which  we  now  condemn  in  other  people,  what  may  we 
not  hope  for  in  their  case,  provided  we  do  not  disgust 
them  with  virtue  by  our  acrimonious  and  uncharitable 
fault-finding?  Abuse  is  the  wrong  weapon  to  use 
against  unrighteous  conduct,  just  as  rebellion  is  the 
wrong  weapon  to  use  against  unrighteous  laws. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

THE  CO-OPERATION  OF  THE  DIVINE  PERSONS  IN 
EFFECTING  THE  NEW  BIRTH— THE  LAYER  OF 
RE  GENERA  TION. 

"But  when  the  kindness  of  God  our  Saviour,  and  His  love  toward 
man,  appeared,  not  by  works  done  in  righteousness,  which  we  did 
ourselves,  but  according  to  His  mercy  He  saved  us,  through  the 
washing  of  regeneration  and  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  He 
poured  out  upon  us  richly,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour ;  that, 
being  justified  by  His  grace,  we  might  be  made  heirs  according  to 
the  hope  of  eternal  life." — Titus  iii.  4 — 7. 


F 


OR  the  second  time  in  this  short  letter  we  have 
one  of  those  statements  of  doctrine  which  are  not 
common  among  the  practical  instructions  which  form 
the  main  portion  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles.  The  other 
doctrinal  statement  was  noticed  in  a  previous  discourse 
on  chap.  ii.  ii — 14.  It  is  worth  while  to  compare  the 
two.  Though  similar,  they  are  not  identical  in  import, 
and  they  are  introduced  for  quite  different  purposes. 
In  the  earlier  passage,  in  order  to  show  why  different 
classes  of  Christians  should  be  taught  to  exhibit  the 
virtues  which  specially  befit  them,  the  Apostle  states 
the  purpose  of  Christ's  work  of  redemption,  a  purpose 
which  all  Christians  are  bound  to  help  in  realizing, 
stimulated  by  what  has  been  done  for  them  in  the 
past  and  by  the  hope  which  lies  before  them  in  the 
future.  In  the  passage  which  we  have  now  to 
consider,  St.  Paul  contrasts  with  the  manifold  wicked- 


iii.4-7.]  THE  LAYER  OF  REGENERATION.  283 

ness  of  unbelievers  the  undeserved  mercies  of  God 
towards  them,  in  order  to  show  what  gratitude 
those  who  have  been  brought  out  of  their  unbelief 
ought  to  feel  for  this  unearned  blessing,  a  gratitude 
which  they  ought  to  exhibit  in  gentle  forbearance  and 
goodwill  towards  those  who  are  still  in  the  darkness  of 
unbelief  as  well  as  to  others. 

The  passage  before  us  forms  the  main  part  of  the 
Second  Lesson  for  the  evening  of  Christmas  Day  in 
both  the  old  and  the  new  lectionaries.  Its  appropriate- 
ness in  setting  forth  so  explicitly  the  Divine  bounty  in 
the  work  of  regeneration  is  manifest.  But  it  would 
have  been  equally  appropriate  as  a  lesson  for  Trinity 
Sunday,  for  the  part  which  each  Person  of  the  Blessed 
Trinity  takes  in  the  work  of  regeneration  is  plainly 
indicated.  The  passage  is  in  this  respect  strikingly 
parallel  to  what  St.  Peter  had  written  in  the  opening  of 
his  Epistle :  "  According  to  the  foreknowledge  of  God 
the  Father,  in  sanctification  of  the  Spirit,  unto  obe- 
dience and  sprinkling  of  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ" 
(l  Pet.  i.  2).  The  goodness  and  love  of  God  the 
Father  towards  mankind  is  the  source  of  man's  redemp- 
tion. From  all  eternity  He  saw  man's  fall ;  and  from 
all  eternity  He  devised  the  means  of  man's  recovery. 
He  appointed  His  Son  to  be  our  representative;  and 
He  accepted  Him  on  our  behalf.  In  this  way  the  Father 
is  **  our  Saviour,"  by  giving  and  accepting  One  Who 
could  save  us.  The  Father  ^^  saved  us  .  .  .  through 
Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour."  Thus  the  Father  and  the 
Son  co-operate  to  effect  man's  salvation,  and  each  in  a 
very  real  and  proper  sense  is  called  '^our  Saviour." 
But  it  is  not  in  man's  own  power  to  accept  the  salvation 
thus  wrought  for  him  and  offered  to  him.  For  power 
to  do  this  he  needs  Divine  assistance ;  which,  however, 


284  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

is  abundantly  granted  to  him.  By  means  of  the  out- 
ward laver  of  baptism  the  inward  regeneration  and 
renewal  by  the  Spirit  is  granted  to  him  through  the 
merits  of  Christ ;  and  then,  the  work  of  his  salvation 
on  the  Divine  side  is  complete.  Through  the  infinite 
mercy  of  the  Blessed  Trinity,  and  not  through  his  own 
merits,  the  baptized  Christian  is  in  a  state  of  salvation, 
and  is  become  an  heir  of  eternal  life.  It  remains  to  be 
seen  whether  the  Christian^  thus  richly  endowed,  will 
continue  in  this  blessed  state,  and  go  on,  by  the  daily 
renewal  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  from  grace  to  grace;  or 
will  through  his  own  weakness  and  wilfulness,  fall 
away.  But,  so  far  as  God's  share  in  the  transaction  is 
concerned,  his  salvation  is  secured  ;  so  that,  as  the 
Church  of  England  affirms  in  the  note  added  to  the 
service  for  the  Public  Baptism  of  Infants  :  "  It  is 
certain  by  God's  Word,  that  children  which  are 
baptized,  dying  before  they  commit  actual  sin,  are  un- 
doubtedly saved."  And  the  several  parts  which  the 
Persons  of  the  Blessed  Trinity  take  in  the  work  of  salva- 
tion are  clearly  indicated  in  one  of  the  prayers  before  the 
baptismal  act,  as  in  the  present  passage  by  St.  Paul. 
Prayer  is  offered  to  the  ^'  heavenly  Father,"  that  He 
will  '^give  His  Holy  Spirit  to  this  Infant,  that  he  may 
be  born  again,  and  be  made  an  heir  of  everlasting 
salvation  ;  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  Thus,  as 
at  the  baptism  of  the  Christ,  so  also  at  that  of  every 
Christian,  the  presence  and  co-operation  of  Father,  Son, 
and  Holy  Spirit  is  indicated. 

It  is  the  Apostle's  object  in  this  condensed  doctrinal 
statement  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  it  was  ''not  by 
works  in  righteousness  which  we  ourselves  did,"  but 
by  the  work  of  the  Blessed  Trinity,  that  we  were 
placed  in  a  state  of  salvation.     He  does  not  stop  to 


iii.  4-7-1  THE  LAVER   OF  REGENERATION.  285 

make  the  qualifications,  which,  however  true  and 
necessary,  do  not  alter  this  fact.  In  the  case  of  adults, 
who  are  converted  to  Christianity, — and  it  is  of  such 
that  he  is  thinking, — it  is  necessary  that  they  should 
be  duly  prepared  for  baptism  by  repentance  and  faith. 
And  in  the  case  of  all  (whether  adults,  or  infants,  who 
live  to  become  responsible  for  their  actions),  it  is 
necessary  that  they  should  appropriate  and  use  the 
graces  bestowed  upon  them  ;  in  other  words,  that  they 
should  grow  in  holiness.  All  this  is  true  ;  but  it  does 
not  affect  the  position.  For  although  man's  co-opera- 
tion is  indispensable — for  God  saves  no  man  against 
his  will — yet  without  God's  assistance  man  cannot 
either  repent  or  believe  before  baptism,  nor  can  he 
continue  in  holiness  after  baptism.  This  passage 
expressly  denies  that  we  effect  our  own  salvation,  or 
that  God  effected  it  in  return  for  our  merits.  But  it 
gives  no  encouragement  to  the  belief  that  we  have 
nothing  to  do  with  "  working  out  our  own  salvation," 
but  have  merely  to  sit  still  and  accept  what  has  been 
done  for  us. 

That  "the  washing  of  regeneration,"  or  (as  the  margin 
of  the  R.V.  more  exactly  has  it)  "  the  laver  of  regen- 
eration," *  signifies  the  Christian  rite  of  baptism,  ought 
to  be  regarded  as  beyond  dispute.  This  is  certainly 
one  of  those  cases  to  which  Hooker's  famous  canon 
of  interpretation  most  thoroughly  applies,  that  "  where 
a  literal  construction  will  stand,  the  farthest  from  the 
letter  is  commonly  the  worst "  {Eccl.  Pol.,  v.  lix.  2). 
This  Hooker  holds  to  be  "  a  most  infallible  rule  in 
expositions  of  sacred  Scripture  " ;  and  although  some 
persons  may  think  that  assertion  somewhat  too  strong, 

*  \ovTphv  iraXiyyeyefflas.     Comp.  Eph.  v.  26. 


286  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

of  the  soundness  of  the  rule  no  reasonable  student  ot 
Scripture  can  doubt.  And  it  is  worth  our  while  to 
notice  that  it  is  in  connexion  with  this  very  subject  of 
baptismal  regeneration  that  Hooker  lays  down  this 
rule.  He  is  answering  those  who  perversely  inter- 
preted our  Lord's  words  to  Nicodemus,  '*  Except  a  man 
be  born  of  water  and  the  Spirit "  (John  iii.  5),  as  mean- 
ing no  more  than  *^  Except  a  man  be  born  of  the 
Spirit,"  ''  water "  being  (as  they  imagined)  only  a 
metaphor,  of  which  "  the  Spirit "  is  the  interpretation. 
On  which  Hooker  remarks :  "  When  the  letter  of  the 
law  hath  two  things  plainly  and  expressly  specified, 
Water,  and  the  Spirit ;  Water  as  a  duty  required  on 
our  parts,  the  Spirit  as  a  gift  which  God  bestoweth ; 
there  is  danger  in  presuming  so  to  interpret  it,  as  if 
the  clause  which  concerneth  ourselves  were  more  than 
needeth.  We  may  by  such  rare  expositions  attain 
perhaps  in  the  end  to  be  thought  witty,  but  with  ill 
advice."  All  which  may  be  fitly  applied  to  the  passage 
before  us,  in  which  it  is  quite  arbitrary  and  against  all 
probability  to  contend  that  "  the  bath  of  regeneration  " 
is  a  mere  metaphor  for  regeneration  without  any  bath, 
or  for  the  Holy  Spirit,  or  for  the  unmeasured  bounty 
with  which  the  Holy  Spirit  is  poured  upon  the 
beHever. 

This  might  be  tenable,  if  there  had  been  no  such  rite 
as  baptism  by  water  enjoined  by  Christ  and  practised 
by  the  Apostles  as  the  necessary  and  universal  method 
of  admission  to  the  Christian  Church.  In  Eph.  v.  26 
(the  only  other  passage  in  the  New  Testament  in  which 
the  word  for  '^  laver  "  or  "  bath  "  or  "  washing  "  occurs) 
the  reference  to  baptism  by  water  is  indisputable,  for 
the  water  is  expressly  mentioned.  "  Christ  also  loved 
the  Church,  and  gave  Himself  up  for  it;  that  He  might 


iu.4-7.]  THE  LAYER  OF  REGENERATIOM.  287 

sanctify  it,  having  cleansed  it  by  the  washing  of  ivater 
with  the  word."  And  in  the  passage  in  the  First 
Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  which,  like  the  one  before 
us,  contrasts  the  appalling  wickedness  of  unbelievers 
with  the  spiritual  condition  of  Christians,  the  reference 
to  baptism  is  scarcely  less  clear.  '*  And  such  were 
some  of  you :  but  ye  were  washed  (lit.  *  ye  washed 
away  '  *  your  sins),  but  ye  were  sanctified,  but  ye  were 
Justified  in  the  Name  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  in 
the  Spirit  of  our  God"  (i  Cor.  vi.  11).  In  which 
passage,  as  here,  the  three  Persons  of  the  Trinity  are 
named  in  connexion  with  the  baptismal  act. 

And  in  speaking  to  the  Jews  at  Jerusalem  of  his  own 
admission  to  the  Church,  St.  Paul  uses  the  same  forms 
of  the  same  word  as  he  uses  to  the  Corinthians  of  their 
admission.  The  exhortation  of  Ananias  to  him,  as  he 
lay  at  Damascus,  was  ^'  And  now  why  tarriest  thou  ? 
Arise,  and  be  baptized^  and  wash  away  thy  sins "  (airo- 
XovaaL  ra?  d/jLUpTia<i  aov),  *'  calling  on  His  Name " 
(Acts  xxii.  16)  :  words  which  are  very  parallel  to  the 
exhortation  of  St.  Peter  on  the  day  of  Pentecost : 
"  Repent  ye,  and  be  baptized^  every  one  of  you  in  the 
Name  of  Jesus  Christ  unto  the  remission  of  your  sins  ) 
and  ye  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost "  (Acts 
ii.  38 ;  comp.  Heb.  x.  2^).     In  these  passages  we  have 

*  Middle  Voice,  dTreXoyo-aor^e,  on  which  see  Professor  Evans  in  the 
Speakers  Commentary  iii.,  p.  282.  And  it  is  worth  noticing  that  in 
both  passages  the  principal  verbs  are  in  the  tense  which  in  Greek 
commonly  indicates  some  one  particular  occasion,  "  Ye  were  wafjhed, 
were  sanctified,  were  justified,"  are  all  in  the  aorist.  So  also 
here  :  "  He  saved  us,"  and  "  He  poured  out  upon  us  "  are  both  in  the 
aorist.  And  in  both  cases  the  natural  reference  is  to  the  particular 
occasion  of  baptism  in  which  we  "were  washed,  sanctified,  and 
justified,"  because  God  "saved  us  by  the  laver  of  regeneration  and 
renewing  of  the  Holy  Spirit  which  He  poured  out  upon  us  richly." 


288  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITt/S. 

a  sacred  rite  described  in  which  the  human  and  the 
Divine  elements  are  clearly  marked.  On  man's  side 
there  is  the  washing  with  water ;  and  on  God's  side 
there  is  the  washing  away  of  sin  and  pouring  out  of 
the  Spirit.  The  body  is  purified,  the  soul  is  purified, 
and  the  soul  is  hallowed.  The  man  is  washed,  is 
justified,  is  sanctified.  He  is  regenerated :  he  is  "  a 
new  creature."  *'The  old  things,"  his  old  principles, 
motives,  and  aims,  then  and  there  ''passed  away", 
(aorist  tense,  TraprjXOev)  :  "  behold,  they  are  become 
new"  (2  Cor.  v.  17).  Can  any  one,  with  these 
passages  before  him,  reasonably  doubt,  that,  when  the 
Apostle  speaks  of  "  the  washing  of  regeneration  "  he 
means  the  Christian  rite  of  baptism,  in  which,  and  by 
means  of  which,  the  regeneration  takes  place  ? 

We  are  fully  justified  by  his  language  here  in  assert- 
ing that  it  is  by  means  of  the  baptismal  washing  that 
the  regeneration  takes  place ;  for  he  asserts  that  God 
"  saved  us  through  the  washing  of  regeneration."  The 
laver  or  bath  of  regeneration  is  the  instrument  or 
means  by  which  God  saved  us.  Such  is  the  natural, 
and  almost  the  necessary  meaning  of  the  Greek  con- 
struction (Sta  with  the  genitive).  Nor  is  this  an 
audacious  erection  of  a  comprehensive  and  momentous 
doctrine  upon  the  narrow  basis  of  a  single  preposition. 
Even  if  this  passage  stood  alone,  it  would  still  be  our 
duty  to  find  a  reasonable  meaning  for  the  Apostle's 
Greek :  and  it  may  be  seriously  doubted  whether  any 
more  reasonable  meaning  than  that  which  is  here  put 
forward  can  be  found.  But  the  passage  does  not  stand 
alone,  as  has  just  been  shown.  And  there  are  numerous 
analogies  which  throw  light  upon  the  question,  proving 
to  us  that  there  is  nothing  exceptional  in  God  (Who 
of  course  does  not  need  any  means  or  instruments) 


iii.4-7-]  THE  LAYER  OF  REGENERATION.  289 

being  willing  to  use  them,  doubtless  because  it  is  better 
for  us  that  He  should  use  them. 

In  illustration  of  the  Greek  construction  we  may- 
compare  that  used  by  St.  Peter  of  the  event  which  he 
takes  (and  the  Church  of  England  in  her  baptismal 
service  has  followed  him)  as  a  type  of  Christian 
baptism.  *'  When  the  long-suffering  of  God  waited  in 
the  days  of  Noah,  while  the  ark  was  a  preparing, 
wherein  few,  that  is,  eight  souls,  were  saved  through 
water :  which  also  after  a  true  likeness  doth  now  save 
you,  even  baptism."  St.  Peter  says  that  Noah  and  his 
family  ''were  saved  by  means  of  water ^^  (hC  vBaro^;), 
just  as  St.  Paul  says  that  God  '*  saved  us  by  means  of 
the  laver  of  regeneration  "  {hia  Xovrpov  TraXtyyevea-ia';), 
In  each  case  the  water  is  the  instrument  of  salvation. 
And  the  analogy  does  not  end  with  the  identity  of  the 
instrument ;  that  is  the  mere  external  resemblance 
between  the  flood  and  baptism.  The  main  part  of  the 
likeness  lies  in  this,  that  in  both  cases  one  of  the  same 
instrument  both  destroys  and  saves.  The  Flood 
destroyed  the  disobedient  by  drowning  them,  and  saved 
Noah  and  his  family  by  floating  them  into  a  new 
home.  Baptism  destroys  the  old  corrupt  element  in 
man's  nature  by  washing  it  away,  and  saves  the 
regenerated  soul  by  bringing  it  into  a  new  life.  And 
the  other  event  which  from  the  earliest  days  has  been 
taken  as  a  figure  of  baptism  is  of  the  same  kind.  At 
the  crossing  of  the  Red  Sea,  the  water  which  destroyed 
the  Egyptians  saved  the  Israelites.  In  all  these  cases 
God  was  not  tied  to  use  water,  or  any  other  instrument. 
He  could  have  saved  Noah  and  the  Israelites,  and 
destroyed  the  disobedient  and  the  Egyptians,  just  as 
He  could  have  healed  Naaman  and  the  man  born  blind, 
without  employing  any  means  whatever.     But  for  out 

19 


290  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

edification  He  condescends  to  employ  means,  such  as 
we  can  perceive  and  understand. 

In  what  way  is  the  employment  of  perceptible  means 
a  help  to  us  ?  In  two  at  least.  It  serves  the  double 
purpose  of  being  both  a  test  of  faith  and  an  aid  to  faith. 

I.  The  acceptance  of  Divinely  appointed  means  is 
necessarily  a  test  of  faith.  Human  intellect  is  apt  to 
assume  that  Omnipotence  is  above  using  instruments. 
"  Is  it  likely,"  we  ask,  ^^  that  the  Almighty  would 
employ  these  means  ?  Are  they  not  altogether  beneath 
the  dignity  of  the  Divine  Nature  ?  Man  needs  tools 
and  materials :  but  God  needs  neither.  It  is  not 
credible  that  He  has  ordained  these  things  as  condi- 
tions of  His  own  operation."  All  which  is  the  old 
cry  of  the  captain  of  the  host  of  Syria.  "  Behold,  I 
thought,  he  will  surely  come  out  to  me,  and  stand  and 
call  on  the  name  of  the  Lord  his  God,  and  wave  his 
hand  over  the  place,  and  recover  the  leper."  That  is, 
why  need  he  enjoin  any  instrument  at  all  ?  But  if  he 
must,  he  might  have  enjoined  something  more  suitable. 
''Are  not  Abanah  and  Pharpar,  the  rivers  of  Damascus, 
better  than  all  the  waters  of  Israel  ?  may  I  not  wash 
in  them,  and  be  clean  ?  "  In  precisel}^  the  same  spirit 
we  ask  still,  "  How  can  water  wash  away  sin  ?  How 
can  bread  and  wine  be  Christ's  body  and  blood  ?  How 
can  the  laying  on  of  a  man's  hand  confer  the  gift  of  the 
Hoi}'  Spirit  ?  Do  not  all  such  assumptions  savour  of 
magic  rather  than  of  Divine  Providence  ?  "  Therefore 
humbly  to  accept  the  means  which  God  has  revealed  as 
the  appointed  channels  of  His  spiritual  blessings  is  a 
real  test  of  the  recipient's  faith.  He  is  thus  enabled  to 
perceive  for  himself  whether  he  does  sincerely  believe 
or  not ;  whether  he  has  the  indispensable  qualification 
for  receiving  the  promised  blessing. 


iii.4-7.]  THE  LAYER  OF  REGENERATION.  291 

2.  The  employment  of  visible  means  is  a  real  aid  to 
faith.  It  is  easier  to  believe  that  an  effect  will  be  pro- 
duced, when  one  can  perceive  something  which  might 
contribute  to  produce  the  effect.  It  is  easier  to  believe 
when  one  sees  means  than  when  none  are  visible ;  and 
it  is  still  easier  to  believe  when  the  means  seem  to  be 
appropriate.  The  man  who  was  born  blind  would  more 
readily  believe  that  Christ  would  give  him  sight,  when 
he  perceived  that  Christ  was  using  spittle  and  clay 
for  the  purpose ;  for  at  that  time  these  things  were 
supposed  to  be  good  for  the  eyes.  And  what  element 
in  nature  is  more  frequently  the  instrument  both  of  life 
and  of  death  than  water?  What  could  more  aptly 
signify  purification  from  defilement  ?  What  act  could 
more  simply  express  a  death  to  sin  and  a  rising  again 
to  righteousness  than  a  plunge  beneath  the  surface  of 
the  water  and  a  re-issuing  from  it  ?  As  St.  Paul  says 
in  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  :  ''  We  were  buried  there- 
fore with  Him  through  baptism  "  {hia  tov  ^aTTTla-fiaro^) 
''into  death;  that  like  as  Christ  was  raised  from  the 
dead  through  the  glory  of  the  Father,  so  we  also 
might  walk  in  newness  of  life  "  (vi.  4).  And  again  to 
the  Colossians  :  "  Having  been  buried  with  Him  in 
baptism,  wherein  ye  were  also  raised  with  Him  through 
faith  in  the  working  of  God,  Who  raised  Him  from  the 
dead  "  (ii.  1 2).  Faith  in  the  inward  gift,  promised  by 
God  to  those  who  believe  and  are  baptized,  becomes 
more  easy,  when  the  outward  means  of  conferring  the 
gift,  not  only  are  readily  perceived,  but  are  recognized 
as  suitable.  In  this  way  our  faith  is  aided  by  God's 
employment  of  means. 

Is  the  "  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost  "  the  same  thing 
as  the  "washing  of  regeneration"?  In  this  passage  the 
two  expressions   refer  to  the  same  fact,  but  in  their 


292  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS, 

respective  meanings  they  are  not  co-extensive.  The 
Greek  construction  is  ambiguous  like  the  English  ;  and 
we  cannot  be  sure  whether  St.  Paul  means  that  God 
saved  us  by  means  of  the  washing  and  by  means  of 
the  renewing,  or  that  God  saved  us  by  means  of  a  laver, 
which  is  both  a  laver  of  regeneration  and  a  laver  of 
renewal.  The  latter  is  more  probable :  but  in  either 
case  the  reference  is  to  one  and  the  same  event  in  the 
Christian's  life.  The  laver  and  the  renewing  refer  to 
baptism  ;  and  the  regeneration  and  the  renewing  refer 
to  baptism  ;  viz.,  to  the  new  birth  which  is  then  effected. 
But,  nevertheless,  the  two  expressions  are  not  co-exten- 
sive in  meaning.  The  laver  and  the  regeneration  refer 
to  one  fact,  and  to  one  fact  only ;  a  fact  v/hich  takes 
place  once  for  all  and  can  never  be  repeated.  A  man 
cannot  have  the  new  birth  a  second  time,  any  more 
than  he  can  be  born  a  second  time :  and  hence  no  one 
may  be  baptized  twice.  But  the  renewing  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  may  take  place  daily.  It  precedes  baptism  in  the 
case  of  adults  ;  for  it  is  only  through  a  renewal  which 
is  the  work  of  the  Spirit  that  they  can  prepare  them- 
selves by  repentance  and  faith  for  baptism.  It  takes 
place  at  baptism,  as  the  Apostle  clearly  indicates  here. 
And  it  continues  after  baptism  ;  for  it  is  by  repeated 
quickening  of  the  inward  life  through  the  action  of  the 
Spirit  that  the  Christian  grows  in  grace  day  by  day. 
In  the  case  of  the  adult,  who  unworthily  receives 
baptism  without  repentance  and  faith,  there  is  no 
spiritual  renewal.  Not  that  the  sacred  rite  remains 
without  effect :  but  the  renewing  of  the  Spirit  is 
suspended  until  the  baptized  person  repents  and 
believes.  Meanwhile  the  mysterious  gift  bestowed  in 
baptism  becomes  a  curse  rather  than  a  blessing ;  or  at 
least  a  curse  as  well  as  a  blessing.     It  may  perhaps 


iii.  4-7-]  THE  LAYER   OF  REGENERATION.  293 

increase  the  possibilities  of  repentance :  it  certainly 
intensifies  the  guilt  of  all  his  sins.  Such  a  person  has 
thrust  himself  into  a  society  without  being  qualified  for 
membership.  He  has  incurred  the  responsibilities  of 
membership :  if  he  desires  the  privileges,  he  must 
obtain  the  qualifications.* 

It  is  God's  gracious  purpose  that  all  should  have  the 
privileges  in  full.  In  baptism  He  washed  us  from  our 
sins,  He  gave  us  a  new  birth,  He  poured  out  His  Holy 
Spirit  upon  us  richly,  through  Jesus  Christ ;  "  in  order 
that^  being  justified  by  His  grace,  we  might  be  made 
heirs  according  to  hope  of  eternal  life." 

*  See  Waterland,  Regeneration  Stated  and  Explained :  "Works,  Vol. 
vi.  pp.  359 — 362.  The  whole  tract  may  be  commended  for  clearness 
and  moderation* 


\  r? 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 

THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY  IN  THE  NEW  TESTA- 
MENT, AND  THE  APOSTLE'S  DIRECTIONS  RE- 
SPECTING THE  TREATMENT  OF  HERETICAL 
PERSONS. 

"A  man  that  is  heretical  after  a  first  and  second  admonition 
refuse ;  knowing  that  such  a  one  is  perverted,  and  sinneth,  being 
self-condemned" — Titus  iii.  lO,  II. 

IT  is  in  connexion  with  this  instruction  respecting 
the  treatment  of  heretical  persons  that  we  have 
some  of  the  earhest  testimonies  to  the  genuineness  of 
the  Epistle  to  Titus.  Thus  Irenseus  about  a.d.  i8o 
writes  :  *'  But  as  many  asy«//  away  from  "  {a^i(TTavTai, 
I  Tim.  iv.  i)  "  the  Church  and  give  heed  to  these  old 
wives^  fables  "  (ypaioSeac  fjLvdoi^,  I  Tim.  iv.  7),  "  are  truly 
self-condemned"  (avTOKaraKpcTOL,  Tit.  iii.  l)  :  "whom 
Paul  charges  us  afler  a  first  and  second  admonition  to 
refuse"  {Adv.  Hcer.,  I.  xvi.  3).  It  will  be  observed  that 
in  this  passage  Irenaeus  makes  an  obvious  allusion  to 
the  First  Epistle  to  Timothy,  and  then  quotes  the  very 
words  of  our  text,  attributing  them  expressly  to  St. 
Paul.  And  about  ten  or  twelve  years  later,  Tertullian, 
after  commenting  on  St.  Paul's  words  to  the  Corin- 
thians, "  For  there  must  be  also  heresies  among  you, 
that  they  which  are  approved  may  be  made  manifest 
among  you"  (l  Cor.  xi.  19),  continues  as  follows  :  "But 
no  more  about  that,   seeing  that  it  is  the  same  Paul 


Hi.  lo,  II.]  THE  MEANING   OF  HERESY.  295 

who  elsewhere  also  in  writing  to  the  Galatians  reckons 
heresies  among  sins  of  the  flesh  (Gal.  v.  20),  and  who 
intimates  to  Titus  that  a  man  who  is  heretical  must  after 
a  first  *  admonition  he  refused,  because  he  that  is  such  is 
perverted  and  sinneth  as  being  self-condemned.  But  in 
almost  every  Epistle,  when  insisting  on  the  duty  of 
avoiding  false  doctrines,  he  censures  heresies  of 
which  the  practical  results  are  false  doctrines,  called  in 
Greek  heresies,  with  reference  to  the  choice  which  a 
man  exercises,  whether  in  instituting  or  in  adopting 
them.  For  this  reason  he  says  that  the  heretical 
person  is  also  self-condemned,  because  he  has  chosen 
for  himself  that  in  which  he  is  condemned.  We,  how- 
ever, may  not  allow  ourselves  anything  after  our  own 
will ;  nor  yet  choose  what  any  one  has  introduced  of 
his  own  will.  The  Apostles  of  the  Lord  are  our 
authorities  :  and  even  they  did  not  choose  to  introduce 
anything  of  their  own  will,  but  faithfully  consigned  to 
the  nations  the  instruction  which  they  received  from 
Christ.  And  so,  even  if  an  angel  from  heaven  were  to 
preach  any  other  gospel,  he  would  be  called  accursed 
by  us"  {De  Prces.  Hcer.,  vi).  In  this  passage,  which 
contains  a  valuable  comment  on  the  meaning  of  the 
word  '^  heresy,"  it  will  be  noticed  that  Tertullian  not 
only  quotes  the  text  before  us  as  coming  from  the 
Epistle  to  Titus,  but,  like  Irenseus,  his  earlier  contem- 
porary, says  expressly  that  the  words  are  those  of  St. 
Paul.  Thus,  from  both  sides  of  the  Mediterranean, 
men  who  had  very  large  opportunities  of  knowing  what 
books  were  accepted  as  Apostolic  and  what  not,  attri- 

*  It  is  worth  noting  that  Tertullian,  with  several  other  Latin 
writers,  omits  the  second  admonition  :  hominem  hcereticunt  post 
primam  correptionem  recttsandum.  Similarly  Cyprian :  hcereticHtn 
hominem  post  unam  correptionem  devita  {Tesi.^  III.  78). 


296  THE  EPISTLE   TO  TITUS, 

bute  our  Epistle  without  hesitation  to  St.  Paul.  And 
in  both  cases  this  is  done  in  treatises  directed  against 
heretics,  who  might  be  expected  to  reply  with  very 
telling  effect,  if  it  could  be  shown  that  what  was 
quoted  against  them  as  the  writing  of  an  Apostle  was 
of  quite  doubtful  origin  and  authority. 

But  the  testimony  which  these  passages  bear  to  the 
authenticity  of  this  Epistle  is  not  the  main  reason  for 
their  being  quoted  here.  Their  interest  for  us  now 
consists  in  the  light  which  they  throw  upon  the  history 
of  the  word  "  heresy,"  and  upon  the  attitude  of  the 
primitive  Church  towards  heretics. 

"  Heresy,"  as  Tertullian  points  out,  is  a  word  of 
Greek  origin,  and  the  idea  which  lies  at  the  root  of 
it  is  choice.  *  Choosing  for  oneself  what  pleases  one- 
self, independently  of  other  considerations; — that  is 
the  fundamental  notion  on  which  later  meanings  of  the 
term  are  based.  Thus  in  the  Septuagint  it  is  used  of 
2i  free-will  offering,  as  distinct  from  what  a  man  is  bound 
to  offer  (Lev.  xxii.  i8  ;  comp.  I  Mace.  viii.  30).  Then 
comes  the  notion  of  choice  in  reference  to  matters  of 
opinion,  without,  however,  necessarily  implying  that 
the  chosen  opinion  is  a  bad  one.  And  in  this  sense 
it  is  used  quite  as  often  for  the  party  or  school  of 
thought  which  holds  the  particular  opinion  as  for  the 
body  of  opinion  which  is  held.  In  this  sense  it  is 
several  times  used  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  ;  as  '*  the 
sect  of  the  Sadducees"  (v.  17),  "  the  sect  of  the  Pharisees  " 
(xv.  5  ;  xxvi.  5)  :  and  in  this  way  Christianity  itself 
was  spoken  of  as  a  "heresy"  or  ''sect";  that  is,  a 
party  with  chosen  opinions  (xxiv.  5,  14;  xxviii.  22). 
And  in  profane  literature  we  find  Diogenes  Laertius  in 

*  a'ipeais,  from   a'ipdv,  aipelndai,  "  to  choose  "  :  not  kom  hcrrere,  "  to 
stick  fast,"  as  has  been  ignorantly  asserted. 


iii.io,  II.]  THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY,  297 

the  second  or  third  century  speaking  of  ten  '*  heresies  " 
or  schools  in  moral  philosophy  (i.  19).  But  it  will  be 
seen  from  the  passages  in  the  Acts  that  the  word  is 
already  acquiring  somewhat  of  a  bad  meaning ;  and 
indeed  this  was  almost  inevitable,  unless  the  original 
signification  was  entirely  abandoned.  In  all  spheres 
of  thought  and  action,  and  especially  in  matters  of 
belief,  a  tendency  to  choose  for  oneself,  and  to  pur- 
sue one's  own  way  independently,  almost  of  necessity 
leads  to  separation  from  others,  to  divisions  and 
factions.  And  factions  in  the  Church  readily  widen 
into  schisms  and  harden  into  heresies. 

Outside  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  the  word  heresy  is 
found  in  the  New  Testament  only  in  three  passages: 
I  Cor.  xi.  19;  Gal.  v.  20;  and  2  Pet.  ii.  I.  In  the  last  of 
these  it  is  used  of  the  erroneous  opinions  themselves ; 
in  the  other  two  the  parties  who  hold  them  may  be  indi- 
cated. But  in  all  cases  the  word  is  used  of  divisions 
inside  the  Church,  not  of  separations  from  it  or  of  posi- 
tions antagonistic  to  it.  Thus  in  2  Pet.  ii.  I  we  have 
the  prophecy  that  "there  shall  be  false  teachers,  who 
shall  privily  bring  in  destructive  heresies,  denying  even 
the  Master  that  bought  them."  Here  the  false  teachers 
are  evidently  inside  the  Church,  corrupting  its  mem- 
bers ;  not  outside,  inducing  its  members  to  leave  it. 
For  the  prophecy  continues :  "  And  m?ny  shall  follow 
their  lascivious  doings ;  by  reason  ot  whom  the  way 
of  the  truth  shall  be  evil  spoken  of."  They  could  not 
cause  "  the  way  of  the  truth  to  be  evil  spoken  of,"  if 
they  were  complete  outsiders,  professing  to  have  no 
connexion  with  it.  In  Gal.  v.  20  ^'heresies"  are 
among  "  the  works  of  the  flesh "  against  which  St. 
Paul  warns  his  fickle  converts,  and  "  heresies "  are 
there   coupled   with  "factions"  and   "divisions,"     In 


298  THE  EPISTLE  TO   TITUS. 

I  Cor.  xi.  19  the  Apostle  gives  as  a  reason  for 
believing  the  report  that  there  are  divisions  in  the 
Church  of  Corinth  the  fact  that  (man's  tendency  to 
differ  being  what  it  is)  divisions  are  inevitable,  and 
have  their  use,  for  in  this  way  those  which  are  approved 
among  Christians  are  made  manifest.  It  is  possible  in 
both  these  passages  to  understand  St.  Paul  as  mxcaning 
the  ^'self-chosen  views/'  as  in  the  passage  in  2  Pet., 
rather  than  the  schools  or  parties  which  have  adopted 
the  views.  But  this  is  not  of  much  moment.  The  im- 
portant thing  to  notice  is,  that  in  all  three  cases  the 
"heresies"  have  caused  or  are  tending  to  cause  splits 
inside  the  Church :  they  do  not  indicate  hostile  posi- 
tions outside  it.  This  use  of  the  word  is  analogous  to 
that  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  where  it  represents 
the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees,  and  even  the  Christian 
Church  itself,  as  parties  or  schools  inside  Judaism,  not 
as  revolts  against  it.  We  shall  be  seriously  misled,  if 
we  allow  the  later  meaning  of  "heresy,"  with  all  its 
medieval  associations,  to  colour  our  interpretation  of 
the  term  as  we  find  it  in  the  New  Testament. 

Another  important  thing  to  remember  in  reference 
to  the  strong  language  which  St.  Paul  and  other 
writers  in  the  New  Testament  use  with  regard  to 
*'  heresies "  and  erroneous  doctrine,  and  the  still 
stronger  language  used  by  early  Christian  writers  in 
commenting  on  these  texts,  is  the  downright  wicked- 
ness of  a  good  many  of  the  '*  self-chosen  views " 
which  had  begun  to  appear  in  the  Church  in  the  first 
century,  and  which  became  rampant  during  the  second. 
The  peril,  not  only  to  faith,  but  to  morals,  was 
immense,  and  it  extended  to  the  very  foundations  of 
both.  When  Christians  were  told  that  there  were 
two  Creators,  of  whom  one  was   good   and   one  was 


ui.  lo,  II.]  THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY,  299 

evil;  that  the  Incarnation  was  an  impossibility;  that 
man's  body  was  so  vile  that  it  was  a  duty  to  abuse 
it ;  that  his  spirit  was  so  pure  that  it  was  impossible 
to  defile  it;  that  to  acquire  knowledge  through  crime 
was  estimable,  for  knowledge  was  good,  and  crime 
was  of  no  moral  significance  to  the  enlightened; — 
then  it  was  necessary  to  speak  out,  and  tell  men  in 
plain  terms  what  the  persons  who  were  inculcating 
such  views  were  really  doing,  and  what  strong 
measures  would  be  necessary,  if  they  persisted  in 
such  teaching. 

Unless  we  keep  a  firm  grasp  upon  these  two  facts ; 
— (l)  the  difference  between  the  meaning  of  the  word 
"  heresy "  as  we  find  it  in  the  New  Testament  and 
its  usual  meaning  at  the  present  time;  and  (2)  the 
monstrous  character  of  some  of  the  views  which 
many  persons  in  the  first  century,  and  many  more 
in  the  second,  claimed  to  hold  as  part  and  parcel 
of  the  Christian  religion ; — we  shall  be  liable  to  go 
grievously  astray  in  drawing  conclusions  as  to  our 
own  practice  from  what  is  said  on  the  subject  in 
Scripture. 

''Woe  unto  the  world,"  said  our  blessed  Lord, 
'*  because  of  occasions  of  stumbhng !  For  it  must 
needs  be  that  the  occasions  come ;  but  woe  to  that 
man  through  whom  the  occasion  cometh"  (Matt,  xviii. 
7).  Human  nature  being  what  it  is,  it  is  morally 
impossible  that  no  one  should  ever  lead  another  into 
sin.  But  that  fact  does  not  destroy  the  responsibility 
of  the  individual  who  leads  his  fellows  into  sin.  St. 
Paul  takes  up  the  principle  thus  laid  down  by  Christ 
and  applies  it  in  a  particular  sphere.  He  tells  his 
Corinthian  converts  that  "  there  must  be  heresies " 
among  them,  and  that  they  serve   the   good   purpose 


300  THE  EPISTLE   TO    TITUS. 

of  sifting  the  chaff  from  the  wheat.  Wherever  the 
light  comes,  it  provokes  opposition  ;  there  is  at  once 
antagonism  between  light  and  darkness.  This  is 
as  true  in  the  sphere  of  faith  and  morals  as  in  that 
of  the  material  world.  Sooner  or  later,  and  generally 
sooner  rather  than  later,  truth  and  innocence  are 
met  and  opposed  by  falsehood  and  sin ;  and  it  is 
falsehood,  wilfully  maintained  in  opposition  to  re- 
vealed and  generally  held  truth,  that  constitutes  the 
essence  of  heresy.  There  are  many  false  opinions 
outside  what  God  has  revealed  to  mankind,  outside 
the  scope  of  the  Gospel.  However  serious  these  may 
be,  they  are  not  heresies.  A  man  may  be  fatally 
at  fault  in  matters  of  belief;  but,  unless  in  some 
sense  he  accepts  Christianity  as  true,  he  is  no  heretic. 
As  Tertullian  says,  '^  In  all  cases  truth  precedes  its 
copy ;  after  the  reality  the  likeness  follows "  {De 
Frees.  Hcer.y  xxix).  That  is,  heresy,  which  is  the 
caricature  of  Christian  truth,  must  be  subsequent 
to  it.  It  is  a  distortion  of  the  original  truth,  which 
some  one  has  arrogantly  chosen  as  preferable  to  that 
of  which  it  is  the  distortion.  Error  which  has  not 
yet  come  in  contact  with  revelation,  and  which  has 
had  no  opportunity  of  either  submitting  to  it  or 
rebelling  against  it,  is  not  heretical.  The  heretical 
spirit  is  seen  in  that  cold  critical  temper,  that  self- 
confident  and  self-willed  attitude,  which  accepts  and 
rejects  opinions  on  principles  of  its  own,  quite  inde- 
pendently of  the  principles  which  are  the  guaranteed 
and  historical  guides  of  the  Church.  But  it  cannot 
accept  or  reject  what  has  never  been  presented  to  it ; 
nor,  until  the  Christian  faith  has  to  some  extent  been 
accepted,  can  the  rejection  of  the  remainder  of  it  be 
accounted  heresy.     Heresy  is  "  a  disease  of  Christian 


iii.  10,  II.]  THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY.  301 

knowledge."  The  disease  may  have  come  from  with- 
out, or  may  have  developed  entirely  from  v^^ithin ; 
and  in  the  former  case  the  source  of  the  malady 
may  be  far  older  than  Christianity  itself.  But  until 
the  noxious  elements  have  entered  the  Christian 
organism  and  claimed  a  home  vi^ithin  the  system, 
it  is  a  misuse  of  language  to  term  them  heretical. 

We  have  not  exhausted  the  teaching  of  the  Apostles 
respecting  this  plague  of  self-assertion  and  inde- 
pendent teaching,  which  even  in  their  time  began 
to  afflict  the  infant  Church,  when  we  have  considered 
all  the  passages  in  which  the  words  ^'  heresy  "  and 
*'  heretical "  occur.  There  are  other  passages,  in 
which  the  thing  is  plainly  mentioned,  although  this 
name  for  it  is  not  used.  It  has  been  said  that  "  the 
Apostles,  though  they  claimed  disciplinary  authority, 
had  evidently  no  thought  of  claiming  infalHbility  for 
any  utterances  of  theirs."*  But  they  certainly  treated 
opposition  to  their  teaching,  or  deviations  from  it, 
as  a  very  serious  matter.  St.  Paul  speaks  of  those 
who  opposed  him  in  the  Church  of  Corinth  as  "  false 
apostles,  deceitful  workers  "  and  *'  ministers  of  Satan  " 
(2  Cor.  xi.  13 — 15).  He  speaks  of  the  Galatians  as 
*'  bewitched  "  by  those  who  would  pervert  the  Gospel 
of  Christ,  and  pronounces  an  anathema  on  those  who 
should  "  preach  any  gospel  other  than  that  which 
he  preached "  (Gal.  i.  7,  8 ;  iii.  i).  Of  the  same 
class  of  teachers  at  Philippi  he  writes :  *^  Beware  of 
the  dogs,  beware  of  the  evil  workers,  bew^are  of  the 
concision  "  (iii.  2).  He  warns  the  Colossians  against 
any  one  who  may  '*  make  spoil  of  them  through  his 
philosophy   and   vain   deceit,    after    the    tradition    of 

♦  T.  Ll.  Davies  in  a  remarkable  paper  on  "The  Higher  Life,"  in 
the  Fortnightly  Review,  January,  1888. 


302  THE  EPISTLE   TO    TITUS, 

men,  after  the  rudiments  of  the  world,  and  not  after 
Christ "  (ii.  8) ;  just  as  he  warned  the  elders  of  the 
Church  at  Ephesus  that  after  his  departure  "grievous 
wolves  would  enter  in  among  them,  not  sparing  the 
flock ;  and  that  from  among  themselves  men  would 
arise,  speaking  perverse  things,  to  draw  away  the 
disciples  after  them  "  (Acts  xx.  29,  30).  And  in  the 
Pastoral  Epistles  we  have  several  utterances  of  the 
same  kind,  including  the  one  before  us  (i  Tim.  i.  3 — 7, 
19,  20;  iv.  I — 3  ;  vi.  3,  4,  20,  21  ;  Tit.  i.  lo — 16;  iii. 
8 — II  ;  2  Tim.  ii.  16—18;  iii.  8,  13). 

Nor  is  St.  Paul  the  only  writer  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment who  feels  bound  to  write  in  this  strain.  The 
same  kind  of  language  fills  no  inconsiderable  portion 
of  the  Second  Epistle  of  Peter  and  the  Epistle  of  Jude 
(2  Pet.  ii. ;  Jude  8 — 16).  More  remarkable  still,  we 
find  even  the  Apostle  of  Love  speaking  in  tones  not 
less  severe.  The  Epistles  to  the  Seven  Churches  of 
Asia  abound  in  such  things  (Rev.  ii. ;  iii).  In  his 
General  Epistle  he  asks,  "  Who  is  the  liar  but  he  that 
denieth  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ  ?  This  is  the  anti- 
christ, even  he  that  denieth  the  Father  and  the  Son " 
(i  John  ii.  22  :  comp.  ii.  26  ;  iv.  I,  3).  In  his  letter  to 
*'  the  elect  lady  and  her  children "  he  speaks  of  the 
"many  deceivers"  who  "confess  not  that  Jesus  Christ 
Cometh  in  the  flesh."  And,  in  a  passage  not  unlike 
the  direction  to  Titus  which  we  are  now  considering, 
he  says  :  "  If  any  one  cometh  unto  you,  and  bringeth 
not  this  teaching,  receive  him  not  into  your  house,  and 
give  him  no  greeting :  for  he  that  giveth  him  greeting 
partaketh  in  his  evil  works." 

The  impression  which  these  passages  produce  on 
our  minds  is  at  least  this; — that,  whether  or  no  the 
Apostles    were    conscious    of  being    protected    by  the 


i.  lo,  II.]  THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY.  303 

Holy  Spirit  from  teaching  anything  that  was  doctrinally 
false,  they  were  at  any  rate  very  stern  in  their  con- 
demnation of  those  Christians  who  deliberately  contra- 
vened what  an  Apostle  had  taught.  And  this  sternness 
is  not  confined  to  those  who  resisted  the  instructions 
of  Apostles  in  matters  of  discipHne.  It  is  quite  as 
clearly  manifested  against  those  who  contradicted 
Apostolic  teaching  in  matters  of  faith.  The  context  of 
the  passage  before  us  shows  that  by  "a  man  that  is 
heretical "  is  meant  one  who  wilfully  takes  his  own  line 
and  thereby  causes  divisions  in  doctrine  quite  as  much 
as  one  who  does  so  as  regards  the  order  and  discipline 
of  the  Church. 

What,  then,  does  St.  Paul  mean  when  he  directs 
Titus  to  "refuse"  such  a  person  after  once  or  twice 
admonishing  him  ?  Certainly  not  that  he  is  to  ex- 
communicate him  ;  the  passage  has  nothing  to  do  with 
formal  excommunication.  It  is  possible  to  maintain 
that  the  direction  here  given  may  imply  excommuni- 
cation-; but  it  is  also  possible  to  maintain  that  it  need 
not  imply  anything  of  the  kind  ;  and  therefore  that  such 
an  interpretation  substitutes  an  uncertain  inference  for 
what  is  certainly  expressed.  The  word  translated  in  the 
R.V.  *^  refuse/'  and  in  the  A.V.  *'  reject/'  is  the  same  as 
that  which  is  used  in  I  Tim.  v.  1 1  in  the  text,  "  Younger 
widows  refuse  "  {izapaiTov).  It  means,  "avoid,  shun,  ex- 
cuse yourself  from  having  anything  to  do  with  "  (comp. 
Heb.  xii.  25).  It  is  also  used  of  things  as  well  as  of 
persons,  and  in  much  the  same  sense  :  "  Refuse  profane 
and  old  wives'  fables"  (i  Tim.  iv.  7),  and  "Foolish 
and  ignorant  questions  refuse "  (2  Tim.  ii.  23).  The 
meaning,  then,  here  seems  to  be  that,  after  a  few 
attempts  to  induce  the  heretical  person  to  desist  from 
his  perverse  and  self-willed  conduct,  Titus  is  to  waste 


304  THE  EPISTLE   TO   TITUS. 

no  more  time  on  him,  because  now  he  knows  that  his 
efforts  will  be  useless.  At  first  he  did  not  know  this ; 
but  after  having  failed  once  or  twice,  he  will  see  that 
it  is  vain  to  repeat  what  produces  no  effect.  The 
man's  self-will  is  incorrigible;  and  not  only  that,  but 
inexcusable ;  for  he  stands  self-condemned.  He  de- 
liberately chose  what  was  opposed  to  the  received 
teaching;  and  he  deliberately  persists  in  it  after  its 
erroneous  character  has  been  pointed  out  to  him.  He 
"  is  perverted,  and  sinneth  " :  that  is,  he  not  only  has 
sinned,  but  goes  on  sinning :  he  continues  in  his  sin, 
in  spite  of  entreaty,  exhortation,  and  reproof. 

In  what  way  are  the  directions  here  given  to  Titus 
to  be  used  for  our  own  guidance  at  the  present  time  ? 
Certain  limitations  as  to  their  application  have  been 
already  pointed  out.  They  do  not  apply  to  persons 
who  have  always  been,  or  who  have  ended  in  placing 
themselves,  outside  the  Christian  Church.  They  refer 
to  persons  who  contend  that  their  self-chosen  views 
are  part  and  parcel  of  the  Gospel,  and  who  claim  to 
hold  and  teach  such  views  as  members  or  even  ministers 
of  the  Church.  Secondly,  they  refer  to  grave  and 
fundamental  errors  with  regard  to  first  principles ;  not 
to  eccentric  views  respecting  matters  of  detail.  And 
in  determining  this  second  point  much  caution  will  be 
needed  ;  especially  when  inferences  are  drawn  from  a 
man's  teaching.  We  should  be  on  our  guard  with 
regard  to  assertions  that  a  particular  teacher  virtually 
denies  the  Divinity  of  Christ,  or  the  Trinity,  or  the 
personality  of  God.  But  when  both  these  points  are 
quite  clear,  that  the  person  contradicts  some  of  the 
primary  truths  of  the  Gospel,  and  that  he  claims  to  do 
so  as  a  Christian,  what  is  a  minister  to  do  to  such  a 
member  of  his  flock  ?     He  is  to  make  one  or  two  efforts 


iii.  lo,  II.]  THE  MEANING  OF  HERESY,  ^5 

to  reclaim  him,  and  then  to  have  as  little  to  do  with 
him  as  possible. 

In  all  such  cases  there  are  three  sets  of  persons  to 
be  considered  : — the  heretic  himself,  those  who  have  to 
deal  with  him,  and  the  Church  at  large.  What  conduct 
on  the  part  of  those  who  have  to  deal  with  him  will  be 
least  prejudicial  to  themselves  and  to  the  Church,  and 
most  beneficial  to  the  man  himself?  The  supreme  law 
of  charity  must  be  the  guiding  principle.  But  that  is 
no  true  charity  which  shows  tenderness  to  one  person 
in  such  a  way  as  to  do  grievous  harm  to  others,  or  to 
do  more  harm  than  good  to  the  person  who  receives  it. 
Love  of  what  is  good  is  not  only  consistent  with  hatred 
of  what  is  evil;  it  cannot  exist  without  such  hatred, 
What  we  have  to  consider,  therefore,  is  this.  Will  friend- 
liness confirm  him  in  his  error  ?  Would  he  be  more 
impressed  by  severity  ?  Is  intercourse  with  him  likely 
to  lead  to  our  being  led  astray  ?  Will  it  increase  his 
influence  and  his  opportunities  of  doing  harm  ?  Is 
severity  likely  to  excite  sympathy  in  other  people,  first 
for  him,  and  then  for  his  teaching  ?  It  is  impossible 
to  lay  down  a  hard  and  fast  rule  that  would  cover  all 
cases;  and  while  we  remember  the  stern  instructions 
which  St.  Paul  gives  to  Titus,  and  St.  John  to  the 
'^  elect  lady,"  let  us  not  forget  the  way  in  which  Jesus 
Christ  treated  publicans  and  sinners. 

In  our  own  day  there  is  danger  of  mistaking  lazy  or 
weak  indifferentism  for  Christian  charity.  It  is  a 
convenient  doctrine  that  the  beliefs  of  our  fellow- 
Christians  are  no  concern  of  ours,  even  when  they  try 
to  propagate  what  contradicts  the  creed.  And,  while 
emphasis  is  laid  upon  the  responsibility  of  accepting 
articles  of  faith,  it  is  assumed  that  there  is  little  or  no 
responsibility   in   refusing   to   accept,    or  in   teaching 

20 


3o6  THE  EPISTLE  TO   TITUS. 

others  to  refuse  also.  To  plead  for  tenderness,  where 
severity  is  needed,  is  not  charity,  but  Laodicean  luke- 
warmness ;  and  mistaken  tenderness  may  easily  end  in 
making  us  ^'  partakers  in  evil  works."  To  be  severe, 
when  severity  is  imperatively  called  for,  is  not  only 
charity  to  the  offenders,  it  "  is  also  charity  towards  all 
men  besides.  It  is  charity  towards  the  ignorant  as 
carrying  instruction  along  with  it;  charity  towards 
the  unwary,  as  giving  them  warning  to  stand  off  from 
infection ;  charity  towards  the  confirmed  Christians,  as 
encouraging  them  still  more,  and  preserving  them  from 
insults ;  charity  towards  the  whole  Church ,  as  support- 
ing both  their  unity  and  purity;  charity  towards  all 
mankind^  towards  them  that  are  without,  as  it  is  recom- 
mending pure  religion  to  them  in  the  most  advantageous 
light,  obviating  their  most  plausible  calumnies,  and 
giving  them  less  occasion  to  blaspheme."  * 

*  "Waterland,  The  Importance  of  the  Doctrine  of  the  Holy  Trinity 
IV.  ii.  2 ;  Works,  vol.  v.  p.  96.    Oxford,  1823. 


THE    SECOND    EPISTLE    TO    TIMOTHY. 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

THE  CHARACTER  AND  CONTENTS  OF  THE  LAST 
EPISTLE  OF  ST.  PAUL.— THE  NEMESIS  OF 
NEGLECTED    GIFTS. 

"  For  the  which  cause  I  put  thee  in  remembrance  that  thou  stir  up 
the  gift  of  God,  which  is  in  thee  through  the  laying  on  of  my  hands. 
For  God  gave  us  not  a  spirit  of  fearfulness ;  but  of  power  and  love 
and  discipline." — 2  Tim.  i.  6,  7. 

IN  the  Second  Epistle  to  Timothy  we  have  the  last 
known  words  of  St.  Paul.  It  is  his  last  will 
and  testament ;  his  last  instructions  to  his  favourite 
disciple  and  through  him  to  the  Church.  It  is  written 
with  full  consciousness  that  the  end  is  at  hand.  His 
course  in  this  world  is  all  but  over;  and  it  will  be 
closed  by  a  violent,  it  may  be  by  a  cruel  death.  The 
letter  is,  therefore,  a  striking  but  thoroughly  natural 
mixture  of  gloom  and  brightness.  On  the  one  hand, 
death  throws  its  dark  shadow  across  the  page.  On  the 
other,  there  is  the  joyous  thought  that  the  realization  of 
his  brightest  hopes  is  close  at  hand.  Death  will  come 
with  its  pain  and  ignominy,  to  cut  short  the  Apostle's 
still  unfinished  work,  to  take  him  away  from  the 
Churches  which  he  has  founded  and  which  still  sorely 
need  his  guidance,  and  from  the  friends  whom  he 
loves,  and  who  still  need  his  counsel  and  support. 
But  death,  while  it  takes  him  away  from  much  to 
which  he  clings  and  which  clings  to  him,  will  free  him 


310  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY 

from  toil,  and  anxiety,  and  neglect,  and  will  take  him  to 
be  with  Christ  until  that  day  when  he  shall  receive  the 
crown  of  righteousness  which  is  laid  up  for  him. 

If  the  shadow  of  impending  death  were  the  only 
source  of  gloom,  the  letter  would  be  far  more  joyous 
than  it  is.  It  would  be  far  more  continuously  a  strain 
of  thanksgiving  and  triumph.  But  the  prospect  of 
ending  his  life  under  the  hand  of  the  public  executioner 
is  not  the  thought  which  dominates  the  more  sorrowful 
portion  of  the  Epistle.  There  is  the  fact  that  he  is 
almost  alone  ;  not  because  his  friends  are  prevented 
from  coming  to  him,  but  because  they  have  forsaken 
him;  some,  it  may  be,  for  pressing  work  elsewhere; 
others  because  the  attractions  of  the  world  were  too 
strong  for  them  ;  but  the  majority  of  them,  because 
they  were  afraid  to  stand  by  him  when  he  was  placed 
at  the  bar  before  Nero.  The  Apostle  is  heavy-hearted 
about  this  desertion  of  him,  not  merely  because  of  the 
wound  which  it  inflicts  on  his  own  affectionate  spirit, 
but  because  of  the  responsibility  which  those  who  are 
guilty  of  it  have  thereby  incurred.  He  pra3^s  that  it 
"  may  not  be  laid  to  their  account." 

Yet  the  thought  which  specially  oppresses  him 
is  ^'  anxiety  about  all  the  Churches  " — and  about 
Timothy  himself  Dark  days  are  coming.  False 
doctrine  will  be  openly  preached  and  will  not  lack 
hearers  ;  and  utterly  un-Christian  conduct  and  conversa- 
tion will  become  grievously  prevalent.  And,  while  the 
godly  are  persecuted,  evil  ftien  wdll  wax  worse  and 
worse.  This  sad  state  of  things  has  already  begun  ; 
and  the  Apostle  seems  to  fear  that  his  beloved  disciple 
is  not  altogether  unaffected  by  it.  3eparation  from  St. 
Paul  and  the  difficulties  of  his  position  may  have  told 
on  his  over-sensitive  temperament,  and   have   caused 


i.6, 7.]       THE  NEMESIS  OF  NEGLECTED   GIFTS.  311 


him  to  be  remiss  in  his  work,  through  indulgence  in 
futile  despondency.  The  words  of  the  text  strike  the 
dominant  chord  of  the  Epistle  and  reveal  to  us  the 
motive  that  prompts  it.  The  Apostle  puts  Timothy  in 
remembrance  "that  he  stir  up  the  gift  of  God  which  is 
in  him."  Again  and  again  he  insists  on  this  and 
similar  counsels.  "  Be  not  ashamed  of  the  testimony 
of  our  Lord,  nor  of  me  His  prisoner ;  but  suffer  hard- 
ships." "That  good  thing  which  was  committed  to  thee 
guard  through  the  Holy  Ghost"  (vv.  8,  13).  "Suffer 
hardship  with  me,  as  a  good  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ." 
"  Give  diligence  to  present  thyself  approved  unto  God, 
a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed"  (ii.  3,  15). 
"  But  abide  thou  in  the  things  which  thou  hast 
learned  and  hast  been  assured  of,  knowing  of  whom 
thou  hast  learned  them"  (iii.  14).  And  then,  as  the 
letter  draws  to  a  close,  he  speaks  in  still  more  solemn 
tones  of  warning  :  "  I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God, 
and  of  Christ  Jesus,  Who  shall  judge  the  quick  and  the 
dead,  and  by  His  appearing  and  His  kingdom  :  be 
instant  in  season,  out  of  season;  reprove,  rebuke, 
exhort,  with  all  longsuffering  and  teaching."  "  Be 
thou  sober  in  all  things,  suffer  hardships,  do  the  work 
of  an  evangelist,  fulfil  thy  ministry"  (iv.  I,  2,  5). 
Evidently  the  Apostle  is  anxious  lest  even  the  rich 
gifts  with  which  Timothy  is  endowed  should  be 
allowed  to  rust  through  want  of  use.  Timidity  and 
weakness  may  prove  fatal  to  him  and  his  work,  in 
spite  of  the  spiritual  advantages  which  he  has  enjoyed. 
The  Apostle's  anxiety  about  the  future  of  the  Churches 
is  interwoven  with  anxiety  about  the  present  and 
future  conduct  of  his  beloved  delegate  and  successor. 

The  Second   Epistle  to  Timothy  is   more  personal 
than  either  of  the  other  Pastoral  Epistles.     It  is  less 


312  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 


official  in  tone  and  contents,  and  is  addressed  more 
directly  to  the  recipient  himself,  than  through  him  to 
others.  Three  main  subjects  are  treated  in  the  letter ; 
and  first  and  foremost  of  these  is  the  conduct  of 
Timothy  himself.  This  subject  occupies  about  a  third 
of  the  Epistle.  The  next  and  longest  section  treats  of 
the  present  and  future  prospects  of  the  Church 
(ii.  14 — iv.  5).  And  lastly  the  Apostle  speaks  of 
himself. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  understand  how  even  those  who 
condemn  the  Pastoral  Epistles  as  the  product  of  a  later 
writer,  feel  almost  obliged  to  admit  that  at  least  some 
of  this  touching  letter  must  be  genuine.  Whoever 
wrote  it  must  have  had  some  genuine  letters  of  St.  Paul 
to  use  as  material.  It  may  be  doubted  whether  any  of 
the  writings  of  that  age  which  have  come  down  to  us 
are  more  thoroughly  characteristic  of  the  person  whose 
name  they  bear,  or  are  more  full  of  touches  which 
a  fabricator  would  never  have  thought  of  introducing. 
The  person  who  forged  the  Second  Epistle  to  Timothy 
in  the  name  of  St.  Paul  must  indeed  have  been  a 
genius.  Nothing  that  has  come  down  to  us  of  the 
literature  of  the  second  century  leads  us  to  suppose 
that  any  such  literary  power  existed.  Whether  we 
regard  the  writer,  or  the  circumstances  in  which  he 
is  placed,  or  the  person  to  whom  he  writes,  all  is 
thoroughly  characteristic,  harmonious,  and  in  keeping. 
We  have  St.  Paul  with  his  exquisite  sympathy, 
sensitiveness,  and  affection,  his  intense  anxiety,  his 
unflinching  courage.  We  have  the  solemnity  and  im- 
portunity of  one  who  knows  that  his  days  are  numbered. 
And  we  have  the  urgency  and  tenderness  of  one  who 
writes  to  a  friend  who  has  his  faults  and  weaknesses, 
but  who  is  trusted  and  loved  in  spite  of  them. 


i.6,  7.]       THE  NEMESIS  OF  NEGLECTED   GIFTS.  313 

In  encouraging  Timothy  to  stir  up  the  gift  that  is  in 
him,  and  not  suffer  himself  to  be  ashamed  of  the 
ignominy,  or  afraid  of  the  hardships,  which  the  service 
of  Christ  entails,  the  Apostle  puts  before  him  five 
considerations.  There  are  the  beautiful  traditions  of 
his  family,  which  are  now  in  his  keeping.  There  is  the 
sublime  character  of  the  Gospel  which  has  been 
entrusted  to  him.  There  is  the  teaching  of  St.  Paul 
himself,  who  has  so  often  given  him  a  "  pattern  of 
sound  words  "  and  a  pattern  of  steadfast  endurance. 
There  is  the  example  of  Onesiphorus  with  his 
courageous  devotion.  And  there  is  the  sure  hope  of 
^'  the  salvation  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  with  eternal 
glory."  Any  one  of  these  things  might  suffice  to  in- 
fluence him  :  Timothy  cannot  be  proof  against  them 
all.  St.  Paul  is  persuaded  that  he  is  preserving  the 
heritage  of  undissembled  faith  which  his  mother  and 
his  grandmother  possessed  before  him.  When  he 
considers  the  character  of  the  Gospel,  of  which  he  has 
become  a  minister,  and  the  gifts  of  which  he  has 
thereby  become  a  recipient,  he  cannot  now  become 
ashamed  of  bearing  testimony  for  it.  And  has  the 
teaching  of  his  old  master,  separation  from  whom  used 
once  to  make  him  weep,  lost  its  hold  upon  him  ?  Of 
the  other  disciples  and  friends  of  the  master,  some 
have  turned  away  from  him,  showing  coldness  or 
dislike  instead  of  sympathy  and  self-sacrifice;  while 
others,  at  great  personal  inconvenience,  and  (it  may  be 
also)  great  personal  danger,  sought  him  out  all  the 
more  diligently  on  account  of  his  imprisonment,  and 
ministered  to  him.  Will  Timothy  take  his  stand  with 
Phygelus  and  Hermogenes,  or  with  Onesiphorus  ? 
And  over  and  above  all  these  considerations,  which  are 
connected  with  this  world,  there  are  the  thoughts  of 


314  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

the  world  to  come.  This  is  no  mere  question  of 
expediency  and  opportuneness,  or  of  personal  loyalty 
and  affection  to  a  human  teacher  and  friend.  There 
is  the  whole  of  eternity  at  stake.  To  have  shared 
Christ's  martyr-death  is  to  share  His  endless  life.  To 
share  His  endurance  and  service  is  to  share  His 
royalty.  But  to  reject  Him,  is  to  ensure  being  rejected 
by  Him.  Were  He  to  receive  faithless  followers 
among  the  faithful.  He  would  be  faithless  to  His 
promises  and  to  Himself. 

For  all  these  reasons,  therefore,  the  Apostle  charges 
his  disciple  to  *^stir  up  the  gift  of  God  which  is  in 
him  through  the  laying  on  of  the  Apostle's  hands." 
And  the  fact  that  he  uses  so  much  argument  and 
entreaty  is  evidence  that  he  had  grave  anxiety  about 
Timothy.  Timothy's  natural  sensitiveness  and  tender- 
ness of  heart  made  him  specially  liable  to  despondency 
and  timidity,  especially  when  separated  from  friends 
and  confronted  by  sturdy  opposition. 

^'  That  thou  stir  up  the  gift  of  God  which  is  in  thee." 
Literally  "  that  thou  kindle  up  and  fan  into  a  flame." 
It  does  not  necessarily  imply  that  there  has  once  been 
a  bright  flame,  which  has  been  allowed  to  die  down, 
leaving  only  smouldering  embers.  But  this  is  the 
natural  meaning  of  the  figure,  and  is  possibly  what  St. 
Paul  impHes  here.  He  does  not  explain  what  precise 
gift  of  God  it  is  that  Timothy  is  to  kindle  into  a  warmer 
glow ;  but,  as  it  is  one  of  those  which  were  conferred 
upon  him  by  the  laying  on  of  hands  at  the  time  of  his 
ordination,  we  may  reasonably  suppose  that  it  is  the 
authority  and  power  to  be  a  minister  of  Christ.  In  the 
First  Epistle  St.  Paul  had  given  Timothy  a  similar 
charge  (iv.  14) ;  and  by  combining  that  passage  with 
this  we  learn  that  both  the  Apostle  and  the  elders  laid 


i.  6,  7.]      THE  NEMESIS  OP  NEGLECTED  GIFTS.  315 

their  hands  on  the  young  evangelist :  *'  Neglect  not 
the  gift  that  is  in  thee,  which  was  given  thee  bv 
prophecy,  with  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  tht 
presbytery."  *  This  talent  committed  to  his  charge  for 
use  in  God's  service  must  not  be  allowed  to  lie  idle ; 
it  must  be  used  with  vigour,  and  trust,  and  courage. 
The  very  character  of  the  gift  bestowed  proves  that  it 
is  to  be  used,  and  used  freely.  "  For  God  gave  us  not 
a  spirit  of  fearfulness ;  but  of  power  and  love  and 
discipline."  St.  Paul  includes  himself  in  the  statement. 
He,  like  his  disciple,  has  received  this  gift  irom  God, 
and  he  knows  from  long  experience  what  its  nature  is. 
It  is  no  '*  spirit  of  fearfulness  ; "  no  "  spirit  of  bondage 
leading  to  fear"  (Rom.  viii.  15).  It  was  never  meant  to 
produce  in  us  a  slavish  fear  of  God,  or  a  cowardly  fear 
of  men.  To  feel  awe  and  reverence  when  dealing  with 
God, — to  feel  responsibility  when  dealing  with  men, 
— is  one  thing.  To  abstain  from  action  for  fear  of 
offending  either,  is  quite  another.  It  is  sometimes 
possible  to  avoid  criticism  by  refusing  to  commit  oneself 
to  anything ;  but  such  refusal  may  be  a  sinful  neglect 
of  opportunities  :  and  no  error  of  judgment  in  using 
the  gifts  committed  to  us  can  be  worse  than  that  of  not 
using  them  at  all.  Those  are  not  necessarily  the  most 
useful  servants  who  make  the  fewest  conspicuous 
mistakes. 

The  spirit  with  which  we  are  endowed  is  a  spirit  of 
powery  whereas  a  spirit  of  fearfulness  is  weak.  Faint- 
heartedness cannot  be  strong.  The  fainthearted  mis- 
trust themselves  and  others  ;  and  they  discourage 
themselves  and  others.     They  anticipate  dangers  and 

♦  The  assertion  that  this  laying  on  of  hands  is  a  mark  of  an  age 
subsequent  to  the  Apostles,  ignores  the  plain  statements  in  Acts  vi.  6; 
xiii.  3 ;  comp.  viii.  17;  ix.  17 ;  xix.  6;  and  Heb.  vi.  2. 


3i6  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

difficulties,  and  *  thereby  sometimes  create  them  ;  and 
they  anticipate  failure,  and  thereby  often  bring  it 
about.  It  is  only  by  acting,  and  by  acting  vigorously 
and  courageously,  that  we  find  out  the  full  power  of  the 
spirit  with  which  we  have  been  blessed. 

Again,  the  gift  which  God  has  bestowed  upon  us  is 
a  spirit  of  love :  and  more  than  anything  else  perfect 
love  casts  out  the  spirit  of  fear.  Fear  is  the  child  of 
bondage  ;  love  is  the  child  of  freedom.  If  we  love  God, 
we  shall  not  live  in  terror  of  His  judgments  :  and  if  we 
love  men,  we  shall  not  live  in  terror  of  their  criticisms. 
Moreover,  the  spirit  of  love  teaches  us  the  nature  of 
the  gift  of  power.  It  is  not  force  or  violence ;  not  an 
imposing  of  our  own  will  on  others.  It  is  an  affection- 
ate striving  to  win  others  over  to  obedience  to  the  will 
of  God.  It  is  the  spirit  of  self-sacrifice ;  not  of  self- 
assertion. 

Lastly,  the  spirit  with  which  we  are  endowed  by 
God  is  a  spirit  of  discipline.  By  discipline  that  cowardly 
indolence,  which  the  spirit  of  fearfulness  engenders, 
can  be  kept  down  and  expelled.  If  it  be  asked,  whether 
the  discipline  be  that  which  Timothy  is  to  enforce  in 
ruling  others,  or  that  which  he  is  to  practise  in  school- 
ing himself,  we  may  answer,  ''  Both."  The  termination 
of  the  word  which  is  here  used  (aco(j)poviafi6s:)  seems  to 
require  the  transitive  meaning  ;  and  slackness  in  cor- 
recting others  may  easily  have  been  one  of  the  ways 
in  which  the  despondency  of  Timothy  showed  itself 
On  the  other  hand  the  whole  context  here  speaks  of 
Timothy's  treatment  of  himself.  To  take  a  more  lively 
interest  in  the  conduct  of  others  would  be  discipline 
for  himself  and  for  them  also.  There  may  be  as  much 
pride  as  humility  in  indulging  the  thought  that  the 
lives  of  other  people  are  so  utterly  bad,  that  it  is  quite 


i.6,  7.]       THE  NEMESIS  OF  NEGLECTED   GIFTS.  317 

out  of  the  power  of  such  persons  as  ourselves  to  effect 
a  reformation.  This  is  a  subtle  way  of  shirking 
responsibility.  Strong  in  the  spirit  of  power,  glowing 
with  the  spirit  of  love,  we  can  turn  the  faults  of  others, 
together  with  all  the  troubles  which  may  befall  us  in 
this  life,  into  instruments  of  discipline. 

The  words  of  the  Apostle,  though  primarily  addressed 
to  ministers,  in  reference  to  the  spiritual  gifts  bestowed 
on  them  at  their  ordination,  must  not  be  confined  to 
them.  They  apply  to  the  gifts  bestowed  by  God  upon 
every  Christian,  and  indeed  upon  every  human  being. 
There  is  a  terrible  penalty  attached  to  the  neglect  of 
the  higher  faculties,  whether  intellectual  or  moral ;  a 
penalty  which  works  surely  and  unerringly  by  a  natural 
law.  We  all  of  us  have  imagination,  intellect,  will. 
These  wonderful  powers  must  have  an  object,  must 
have  employment.  If  we  do  not  give  them  their  true 
object,  viz.,  the  glory  of  God,  they  will  find  an  object 
for  themselves.  Instead  of  soaring  upwards  on  the 
wings  supplied  by  the  glories  of  creation  and  the 
mercies  of  redemption,  they  will  sink  downwards  into 
the  mire.  They  will  fasten  upon  the  flesh  ;  and  in  an 
atmosphere  poisoned  by  debasing  associations  they  will 
become  debased  also.  Instead  of  raising  the  man  who 
possesses  them  into  that  higher  life,  which  is  a  fore- 
taste of  heaven,  they  will  hurry  him  downwards  with 
the  accumulated  pressure  of  an  undisciplined  intellect, 
a  polluted  imagination,  and  a  lawless  will.  That  which 
should  have  been  for  wealth,  becomes  an  occasion 
of  falling.  Angels  of  light  become  angels  of  darkness. 
And  powers  which  ought  to  be  as  priests,  consecrating 
the  whqle  of  our  nature  to  God,  become  as  demons, 
shameless  and  ruthless  in  devoting  us  to  the  evil  one. 
Not  only  every  minister  of  Christ,  but  every  thinking  man, 


31^  THE  SkCOND  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHV, 

has  need  from  time  to  time  "  to  stir  up  the  gift  of  God 
that  is  in  him/'  to  kindle  it  into  a  flame,  and  see  that  it 
is  directed  to  holy  ends  and  exercised  in  noble  service. 
God's  royal  gifts  of  intellect  and  will  cannot  be  flung 
away,  cannot  be  left  unused,  cannot  be  extinguished. 
For  good  or  for  evil  they  are  ours ;  and  they  are 
deathless.  But,  though  they  cannot  be  destroyed  they 
can  be  neglected.  They  can  be  buried  in  the  earth, 
till  they  breed  worms  and  stinkf^  They  can  be  allowed 
to  run  riot,  until  they  become  as  wild  beasts,  and  turn 
again  and  rend  us.  Or  in  the  spirit  of  power,  or  love, 
and  of  discipline,  they  may  be  chastened  by  lofty 
exercise  and  sanctified  to  heavenly  uses,  till  they 
become  more  and  more  fit  to  be  the  equipment  of  one, 
who  is  for  ever  to  stand  "  before  the  throne  of  God,  and 
praise  Him  day  and  night  in  His  temple." 


CHAPTER  XXVIIl. 

THE  HEARTLESSNESS  OF  PHYGELUS  AND  HERMO- 
GENES.  —  THE  DEVOTION  OF  ONESIPHORUS.— 
PR  A  VERS  FOR  THE  DEAD. 

"  This  thou  knowest,  that  all  that  are  in  Asia  turned  away  from  me ; 
of  whom  are  Phygelus  and  Hermogenes.  The  Lord  grant  mercy  unto 
the  house  of  Onesiphorus :  for  he  oft  refreshed  me,  and  was  not 
ashamed  of  my  chain  ;  but,  when  he  was  in  Rome,  he  sought  me 
diligently  and  found  me  (the  Lord  grant  unto  him  to  find  mercy  of 
the  Ldrd  in  that  day)  ;  and  in  how  many  things  he  ministered  at 
Ephesus,  thou  knowest  very  well." — 2  Tim.  i.  15 — 18. 

WE  have  here  one  of  the  arguments  which  St. 
Paul  makes  use  of  in  urging  his  beloved  disciple 
to  stir  up  the  gift  of  God  that  is  in  him  through  the 
laying  on  of  hands,  and  not  allow  himself  to  be  afraid 
of  the  ignominy  and  the  sufferings,  which  the  service 
of  Jesus  Christ  involves.  After  reminding  him  of  the 
holy  traditions  of  his  family,  of  the  glorious  character 
of  the  Gospel  which  has  been  committed  to  him,  and 
of  the  character  of  the  Apostle's  own  teaching,  St. 
Paul  now  goes  on  to  point  out,  as  a  warning,  the 
conduct  of  those  in  Asia  who  had  deserted  him  in  his 
hour  of  need  ;  and,  as  an  example,  in  marked  contrast 
to  them,  the  affectionate  courage  and  persistent  devotion 
of  Onesiphorus.  Timothy  is  not  likely  to  follow  those 
in  Asia  in  their  cowardly  desertion  of  the  Apostle.  He 
will  surely  bestir  himself  to   follow  an  example,  the 


3^0  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO    TIMOTHY, 

details  of  which  are  so  well  known  to  him  and  so  very 
much  to  the  point.  Timothy's  special  knowledge  of  both 
cases,  so  far  as  the  conduct  referred  to  lay  not  in  Rome 
but  in  Asia,  is  emphatically  insisted  upon  by  St.  Paul. 
He  begins  by  saying,  ^'  This  thou  knowest,  that  all  that 
are  in  Asia  turned  away  from  me:"  and  he  concludes 
with  the  remark,  "  In  how  many  things  he  ministered  at 
Ephesus,  thou  knoivest  very  well ; "  or,  as  the  Greek 
comparative  probably  means,  "  thou  knowest  better  than 
I  do."  And  it  is  worth  noticing  that  St.  Paul  uses  a 
different  word  for  "  know  "  in  the  two  cases.  Of  his 
desertion  by  those  in  Asia  he  uses  a  word  of  general 
meaning  (olSa?),  which  implies  knowledge  about  the 
things  or  persons  in  question,  but  need  not  imply  more 
than  hearsay  knowledge  of  what  is  notorious.  Of  the 
devoted  service  of  Onesiphorus  at  Ephesus  he  uses 
a  word  {<yLuco(7K€i^),  which  implies  progressive  personal 
experience.  Timothy  had  of  course  heard  all  about  the 
refusal  of  Phygelus  and  Hermogenes  and  others  to 
recognize  the  claim  which  St.  Paul  had  upon  their 
services ;  what  he  saw  and  experienced  continually 
gave  him  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  conduct  of 
Onesiphorus  in  the  Church  of  which  Timothy  had  the 
chief  care. 

There  has  been  a  great  deal  of  discussion  about  the 
meaning  of  St.  Paul's  statements  respecting  these  two 
contrasted  cases,  Phygelus  and  those  like  him  on  the 
one  side,  and  Onesiphorus  on  the  other :  and  with 
regard  to  both  of  them  a  variety  of  suggestions  have 
been  made,  which  are  scarcely  compatible  with  the 
language  used,  and  which  do  not  after  all  make  the 
situation  more  intelligible.  It  must  be  admitted  that 
the  brevity  of  the  statements  does  leave  room  for  a 
certain  amount  of  conjecture ;  but,  nevertheless,  they 


i.  iS-i8.]  PRAYERS  FOR   THE  DEAD,  32 1 

are  clear  enough  to  enable  us  to  conjecture  with  a  fair 
amount  of  certainty. 

And  first  with  regard  to  the  case  of  those  in  Asia. 
They  are  in  Asia  at  the  time  when  this  letter  is  being 
written.  It  is  quite  inadmissible  to  twist  this  plain 
language  and  force  it  to  mean  ''  those  from  Asia  who 
are  now  in  Rome."  01  eV  TfiAfria  cannot  be  equivalent 
to  ol  ifc  Tri<;Aaia<^.  If  St.  Paul  meant  the  latter,  why 
did  he  not  write  it  ?  Secondly,  it  is  the  proconsular 
province  of  Asia  that  is  meant,  that  is  the  western 
portion  of  Asia  Minor,  and  not  the  continent  of  Asia. 
Thirdly,  the  "  turning  away  "  of  these  Christians  in 
Asia  Minor  does  not  mean  their  apostasy  from  the 
faith,  of  which  there  is  no  hint  either  in  the  word  or  in 
the  context.  St.  Paul  would  hardly  have  spoken  of 
their  abandonment  of  Christianity  as  turning  away 
from  him.  It  means  that  they  turned  their  faces  away 
from  him,  and  refused  to  have  anything  to  say  to  him. 
When  he  sought  their  sympathy  and  assistance,  they 
renounced  his  acquaintance,  or  at  any  rate  refused  to 
admit  his  claim  upon  them.  It  is  the  very  expression 
used  by  Christ  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount;  **  From 
him  that  would  borrow  of  thee,  turn  not  thou  away  " 
(Matt.  V.  42).  This  was  exactly  what  these  Asiatic 
disciples  had  done  :  the  Apostle  had  asked  them  to 
lend  him  their  help  and  support ;  and  they  had  "  turned 
away  from"  him.  But  what  is  the  meaning  of  the 
**  all "  ?  He  says  that  "  all  that  are  in  Asia  turned 
away  from  "  him.  Obviously  there  is  some  qualification 
to  be  understood.  He  cannot  mean  that  Timothy  is 
well  aware  that  every  believer  in  Asia  Minor  had 
repudiated  St.  Paul.  Some  have  supposed  that  the 
necessary  qualification  is  to  be  found  in  what  follows ; 
viz.,    *^of    whom    are    Phygelus    and    Hermogenes." 

21 


322  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

The  meaning  would  then  be  that  the  whole  of  the 
party  to  which  Phygelus  and  Hermogenes  belong 
rejected  the  Apostle.  But  the  arrangement  of  the 
sentence  is  quite  against  this  supposition ;  and  there  is 
nothing  either  said  or  implied  about  these  two  men 
being  the  leaders  or  representatives  of  a  party.  The 
expression  respecting  them  is  exactly  parallel  to  that  in 
the  First  Epistle  respecting  those  who  "  made  ship- 
wreck concerning  the  faith  :  of  whom  is  Hymenseus 
and  Alexander"  (i.  19,  20).  In  each  case,  out  of  a 
class  of  persons  who  are  spoken  of  in  general  terms, 
two  are  mentioned  by  name.  What  then  is  the  quali- 
fication of  the  ''  all,"  which  common  sense  requires  ? 
It  means  simply,  *^  all  whom  I  asked,  all  to  whom  I 
made  an  appeal  for  assistance."  *  At  the  time  when 
this  letter  was  written,  there  were  several  Christians 
in  Asia  Minor, — some  of  them  known  to  Timothy, — to 
whom  St.  Paul  had  applied  for  help  in  his  imprison- 
ment ;  and,  as  Timothy  was  very  well  aware,  they 
every  one  of  them  refused  to  give  it.  And  this  refusal 
took  place  in  Asia  Minor,  not  in  Rome.  Some  have 
supposed  that,  although  these  unfriendly  Christians 
were  in  Asia  when  St.  Paul  wrote  about  them,  yet  it 
was  in  Rome  that  they  "  turned  away  from "  him. 
They  had  been  in  Rome,  and  instead  of  remaining 
there  to  comfort  the  prisoner,  they  had  gone  away  to 
Asia  Minor.  On  this  supposition  a  difficulty  has  been 
raised,  and  it  has  been  pressed  as  if  it  told  against  the 
genuineness  of  the  Epistle.  How,  it  is  asked,  could 
Timothy,  who  was  in  Ephesus,  be  supposed  to  be  well 
aware  of  what  took  place  in  Rome  ?  And  to  meet  this 
objection  it  has  been  conjectured,  that  shortly  before 
this  letter  was  written  some  one  had  gone  with  news 

*  See  below  on  "All  forscok  me,"  in  No.  XXXVII,  p.  420. 


i.  15-18.]  PRA  VERS  FOR   THE  DEAD  323 

from  Rome  to  Ephesus.  But  this  is  to  meet  an 
imaginary  difficulty  with  an  imaginary  fact.  Let  us 
imagine  nothing,  and  then  all  runs  smoothly.  Every 
one  in  Asia  Minor,  to  whom  application  was  made  on 
behalf  of  St.  Paul,  ^'  turned  away  from  "  him  and  refused 
to  do  what  was  asked.  Of  such  a  fact  as  this  the 
overseer  of  the  Church  of  Ephesus  could  not  fail  to 
have  knowledge  ;  and,  distressing  as  it  was,  it  ought 
not  to  make  him  sink  down  into  indolent  despondericy, 
but  stir  him  up  to  redoubled  exertion.  What  the 
precise  request  was  that  Phygelus  and  Hermogenes 
and  the  rest  had  refused,  we  do  not  know ;  but  very 
possibly  it  was  to  go  to  Rome  and  exert  themselves 
on  the  Apostle's  behalf.  Of  the  two  persons  named 
nothing  further  is  known.  They  are  mentioned  as 
being  known  to  Timothy,  and  very  possibly  as  being 
residents  in  Ephesus. 

Now  let  us  turn  to  the  case  of  Onesiphorus,  whose 
conduct  is  such  a  marked  contrast  to  these  others.  In 
the  most  natural  way  St.  Paul  first  of  all  tells  Timothy 
what  he  experienced  from  Onesiphorus  in  Rome ;  and 
then  appeals  to  Timothy's  own  experience  of  him  in 
Ephesus.  In  between  these  two  passages  there  is  a 
sentence,  inserted  parenthetically,  which  has  been  the 
subject  of  a  good  deal  of  controversy.  "  The  Lord 
grant  unto  him  to  find  mercy  of  the  Lord  in  that  day." 
On  the  one  side  it  is  argued  that  the  context  shows 
that  Onesiphorus  is  dead,  and  that  therefore  we  have 
Scriptural  authority  for  prayers  for  the  dead  :  on  the 
other  that  it  is  by  no  means  certain  that  Onesiphorus 
was  dead  at  the  time  when  St.  Paul  wrote ;  and  that, 
even  if  he  was,  this  parenthesis  is  more  of  the  nature  of 
a  pious  wish,  or  expression  of  hope,  than  a  prayer.  It 
need  scarcely  be  said  that  on  the  whole  the  latter  is  the 


324  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

view  taken  by  Protestant  commentators,  although  by 
no  means  universally ;  while  the  former  is  the  inter- 
pretation which  finds  favour  with  Roman  Catholics. 
Scripture  elsewhere  is  almost  entirely  silent  on  the 
subject ;  and  hence  this  passage  is  regarded  as  of 
special  importance.  But  it  ought  to  be  possible  to 
approach  the  discussion  of  it  without  heat  or  prejudice. 
Certainly  the  balance  of  probability  is  decidedly  in 
favour  of  the  view  that  Onesiphorus  was  already  dead 
when  St.  Paul  wrote  these  words.  There  is  not  only 
the  fact  that  he  here  speaks  of  *'  the  house  of  Onesi- 
phorus "  in  connexion  with  the  present,  and  of  Onesi- 
phorus himself  only  in  connexion  with  the  past :  there 
is  also  the  still  more  marked  fact  that  in  the  final 
salutations,  while  greetings  are  sent  to  Prisca  and 
Aquila,  and  from  Eubulus,  Pudens,  Linus,  and  Claudia, 
yet  it  is  once  more  "the  house  of  Onesiphorus"  and 
not  Onesiphorus  himself  who  is  saluted.  This  language 
is  thoroughly  intelligible,  if  Onesiphorus  was  no  longer 
alive,  but  had  a  wife  and  children  who  were  still  living 
at  Ephesus ;  but  it  is  not  easy  to  explain  this  reference 
in  two  places  to  the  household  of  Onesiphorus,  if  he 
himself  was  still  alive.  In  all  the  other  cases  the 
individual  and  not  the  household  is  mentioned.  Nor 
is  this  twofold  reference  to  his  family  rather  than  to 
himself  the  only  fact  which  points  in  this  direction. 
There  is  also  the  character  of  the  Apostle's  prayer. 
Why  does  he  confine  his  desires  respecting  the  requital 
of  Onesiphorus*  kindness  to  the  day  of  judgment  ? 
Why  does  he  not  also  pray  that  he  may  be  requited  in 
this  life  ?  that  he  "may  prosper  and  be  in  health,  even 
as  his  soul  prospereth,"  as  St.  John  prays  for  Gaius 
(3  John  2)  ?  This  again  is  thoroughly  intelligible,  if 
Onesiphorus  is  already  dead.     It  is  much  less  inteUigible 


i.  15-18.]  PRAYERS  FOR   THE  DEAD.  325 


if  he  is  still  alive.  It  seems,  therefore,  to  be  scarcely 
too  much  to  say  that  there  is  no  serious  reason  for 
questioning  the  now  widely  accepted  view  that  at  the 
time  when  St.  Paul  wrote  these  words  Onesiphorus  was 
among  the  departed. 

With  regard  to  the  second  point  there  seems  to  be 
equal  absence  of  serious  reason  for  doubting  that  the 
words  in  question  constitute  a  prayer.  It  is  difficult 
to  find  a  term  which  better  describes  them  than  the 
word  ''  prayer : "  and  in  discussing  them  one  would 
have  to  be  specially  careful  in  order  to  avoid  the  words 
"  pray "  and  "  prayer  "  in  connexion  with  them.  It 
does  not  much  matter  what  meaning  we  give  to  *'  the 
Lord"  in  each  case;  whether  both  refer  to  Christ,  or 
both  to  the  Father,  or  one  to  Christ  and  the  other  to 
the  Father.  In  any  case  we  have  a  prayer  that  the 
Judge  at  the  last  day  will  remember  those  good  deeds 
of  Onesiphorus,  which  the  Apostle  has  been  unable  to 
repay,  and  will  place  them  to  his  account.  Paul  cannot 
requite  them,  but  he  prays  that  God  will  do  so  by 
showing  mercy  upon  him  at  the  last  day.* 

Having  thus  concluded  that,  according  to  the  more 
probable  and  reasonable  mi^^n,  the  passage  before  us 
contains  a  prayer  offered  up  by  the  Apostle  on  behalf 
of  one  who  is  dead,  we  seem  to  have  obtained  his 
sanction,  and  therefore  the  sanction  of  Scripture,  for 
using  similar  prayers  ourselves.  But  what  is  a  similar 
prayer  ?  There  are  many  kinds  of  intercessions  which 
may  be  made  on  behalf  of  those  who  have  gone  before 
us  into  the  other  world  :  and  it  does  not  follow  that, 
because  one  kind  of  intercession  has  Scriptural  authority, 

*  With  the  double  use  of  Lord  here,  compare  Exod.  xxxiv.  9, 
where  Moses  prays.  "  O  Lora,  let  the  Lord,  I  pray  Thee,  go  in  the 
midst  of  us,"     Comp.  also  Gen,  xix.  24. 


326  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

therefore  any  kind  of  intercession  is  allowable.  This 
passage  may  be  quoted  as  reasonable  evidence  that  the 
death  of  a  person  does  not  extinguish  our  right  or  our 
duty  to  pray  for  him  :  but  it  ought  not  to  be  quoted 
as  authority  for  such  prayers  on  behalf  of  the  dead 
as  are  very  different  in  kind  from  the  one  of  which 
we  have  an  example  here.  Many  other  kinds  of 
intercession  for  the  dead  may  be  reasonable  and 
allowable ;  but  this  passage  proves  no  more  than  that 
some  kinds  of  intercession  for  the  dead  are  allowable, 
viz.,  those  in  which  we  pray  that  God  will  have  mercy 
at  the  day  of  judgment  on  those  who  have  done  good 
to  us  and  others  during  their  life  upon  earth. 

But  is  the  right,  which  is  also  the  duty,  of  praying 
for  the  departed  limited  by  the  amount  of  sanction 
which  it  is  possible  to  obtain  from  this  solitary  passage 
of  Scripture  ?  Assuredly  not.  Two  other  authorities 
have  to  be  consulted, — reason  and  tradition. 

I.  This  pious  practice,  so  full  of  comfort  to  affec- 
tionate souls,  is  reasonable  in  itself.  Scripture,  which 
is  mercifully  reticent  respecting  a  subject  so  liable  to 
provoke  unhealthy  curiosity  and  excitement,  neverthe- 
less does  tell  us  plainly  some  facts  respecting  the 
unseen  world.  (i)  Those  whom  we  call  the  dead 
are  still  alive.  God  is  still  the  God  of  Abraham,  of 
Isaac,  and  of  Jacob  :  and  He  is  not  the  God  of  the 
dead,  but  of  the  living  (Matt,  xxii,  32).  Those  who 
believe  that  death  is  annihilation,  and  that  there  can  be 
no  resurrection,  '*  do  greatly  err  "  (Mark  xii.  27).  And 
(2)  the  living  souls  of  the  departed  are  still  conscious : 
their  bodies  are  asleep  in  this  world,  but  their  spirits 
are  awake  in  the  other.  For  this  truth  we  are  not 
dependent  upon  the  disputable  meaning  of  the  parable 
of    Dives    and    Lazarus;    although    we   can     liardly 


i.  1 5-1 8.]  PRAYERS  FOR   THE  DEAD.  327 

suppose  that  that  parable  would  ever  have  been 
spoken,  unless  the  continued  consciousness  of  the  dead 
and  their  interest  in  the  living  were  a  fact.  Christ's 
parables  are  never  mere  fables,  in  which  nature  is 
distorted  in  order  to  point  a  moral :  His  lessons  are 
ever  drawn  from  God's  universe  as  it  is.  But  besides 
the  parable  (Luke  xvi.  19 — 31),  there  is  His  declaration 
that  Abraham  not  only  ''  exulted "  in  anticipation  of 
the  coming  of  the  Messiah,  but  "  he  saw  "  that  coming 
"and  was  glad"  thereat  (John  viii.  56).  And  there 
is  His  promise  to  the  penitent  thief:  "Verily  I  say 
unto  thee.  To-day  shalt  thou  be  with  me  in  Paradise " 
(Luke  xxiii.  43).  Can  we  believe  that  this  promise, 
given  at  so  awful  a  moment  with  such  solemn  assur- 
ance ("Verily  I  say  unto  thee"),  would  have  been 
made,  if  the  robber's  soul,  when  in  Paradise,  would  be 
unconscious  of  Christ's  companionship  ?  Could  Christ 
then  have  "  preached  unto  the  spirits  in  prison " 
(l  Pet.  iii.  19),  if  the  spirits  of  those  who  had  died 
in  the  Flood  were  deprived  of  consciousness  ?  And 
what  can  be  the  meaning  of  "  the  souls  of  them  that 
had  been  slain  for  the  word  of  God "  crying  "  How 
long,  O  Master  the  holy  and  true,  dost  Thou  not 
judge  and  avenge  our  blood  ?  "  (Rev.  vi.  10),  if  the  souls 
of  the  slain  slumber  in  the  unseen  world  ? 

It  is  not  necessary  to  quote  Scripture  to  prove  that 
the  departed  are  not  yet  perfect.  Their  final  con- 
summation will  not  be  reached  until  the  coming  of 
Christ  at  the  last  great  day  (Heb.  xi.  40). 

If,  then,  the  dead  are  conscious,  and  are  not  yet 
perfected,  they  are  capable  of  progress.  They  may 
increase  in  happiness,  and  possibly  in  holiness.  May 
we  not  go  farther  and  say,  that  they  must  be  growing, 
must  be  progressing   towards  a  better  state;  for,   so 


328  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO    TIMOTHY, 

far  as  we  have  experience,  there  is  no  such  thing  as 
conscious  Hfe  in  a  state  of  stagnation  ?  Conscious  life 
is  always  either  growing  or  decaying  :  and  decay  is 
incipient  death.  For  conscious  creatures,  who  are 
incapable  of  decay  and  death,  growth  seems  to  be  a  ne- 
cessary attribute.  We  conclude,  therefore,  on  grounds 
partly  of  Scripture  and  partly  of  reason,  that  the 
faithful  departed  are  consciously  progressing  towards 
a  condition  of  higher  perfection. 

But  this  conclusion  must  necessarily  carry  us  still 
farther.  These  consciously  developing  souls  are  God's 
children  and  our  brethren ;  they  are,  like  ourselves, 
members  of  Christ  and  joint-heirs  with  us  of  His 
kingdom  ;  they  are  inseparably  united  with  us  in  "  the 
Communion  of  Saints."  May  we  not  pray  for  them 
to  aid  them  in  their  progress  ?  And  if,  with  St.  Paul's 
prayer  for  Onesiphorus  before  us,  we  are  convinced  that 
we  may  pray  for  them,  does  it  not  become  our  bounden 
duty  to  do  so  ?  On  what  grounds  can  we  accept  the 
obHgation  of  praying  for  the  spiritual  advancement  of 
those  who  are  with  us  in  the  flesh,  and  yet  refuse  to 
help  by  our  prayers  the  spiritual  advancement  of  those 
who  have  joined  that  '^  great  cloud  of  witnesses  "  in  the 
unseen  world,  by  which  we  are  perpetually  encompassed 
(Heb.  xii.  i)  ?  The  very  fact  that  they  v/itness  our 
prayers  for  them  may  be  to  them  an  increase  of  strength 
and  joy. 

II.  Tradition  amply  confirms  us  in  the  belief  that 
this  pious  practice  is  lawful,  and  binding  upon  all  who 
recognize  its  lawfulness.  The  remarkable  narrative  in 
2  Maccabees  xii.  shows  that  this  belief  in  a  very 
extreme  form  was  common  among  the  Jews,  and  publicly 
acted  upon,  before  the  coming  of  Christ.  It  is  highly 
improbable   that   prayers   for  the  dead  were   omitted 


i.  i5-i8.]  PRAYERS  FOR   THE  DEAD.  329 

from  the  public  worship  of  the  synagogue,  in  which 
Jesus  Christ  so  frequently  took  part.  It  is  quite  certain 
that  such  prayers  are  found  in  every  early  Christian 
liturgy,  and  to  this  day  form  part  of  the  liturgies  in 
use  throughout  the  greater  portion  of  Christendom. 
And,  although  the  medieval  abuses  connected  with 
such  prayers  induced  the  reformers  of  our  own  liturgy 
almost,  if  not  quite,  entirely  to  omit  them,  yet  the 
Church  of  England  has  never  set  any  bounds  to  the 
liberty  of  its  members  in  this  respect.  Each  one  of  us 
is  free  in  this  matter,  and  therefore  has  the  responsi- 
bility of  using  or  neglecting  what  the  whole  of  the 
primitive  Church,  and  the  large  majority  of  Christians 
throughout  all  these  centuries,  have  believed  to  be 
a  means  of  advancing  the  peace  and  glory  of  Christ's 
kingdom.  About  the  practice  of  the  primitive  Church 
there  can  be  no  question.  Doubt  has  been  thrown 
upon  the  liturgies,  because  it  has  been  said  that  some 
portions  are  certainly  of  much  later  origin  than  the 
rest,  and  therefore  these  j^rayers  may  be  later  inser- 
tions and  corruptions.  But  that  cannot  be  so ;  for 
liturgies  do  not  stand  alone.  In  this  matter  they  have 
the  support  of  a  chain  of  Christian  writers  beginning 
with  TertuUian  in  the  second  century,  and  also  of  early 
inscriptions  in  the  catacombs.  About  the  meagre  allu- 
sions to  the  departed  in  our  own  liturgy  there  is  more 
room  for  doubt :  but  perhaps  the  most  that  can  safely  be 
asserted  is  this  ;^-that  here  and  there  sentences  have 
been  worded  in  such  a  way  that  it  is  possible  for  those, 
who  wish  to  do  so,  to  include  the  faithful  departed  in 
the  prayer  as  well  as  the  living.  Bishop  Cosin  has 
given  his  authority  to  this  interpretation  of  the  prayer 
that  "  we  and  all  Thy  whole  Church  may  obtain 
remission   of  our   sins  and  all  other  benefits  of  His 


330  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

passion."  By  this,  he  says,  "  is  to  be  understood,  as 
well  those  that  have  been  here  before,  and  those  that 
shall  be  hereafter,  as  those  that  are  now  members  of 
it : "  and  as  one  of  the  revisers  his  authority  is  great. 
And  the  prayer  in  the  Burial  Service,  "  that  we,  with 
all  those  that  are  departed  in  the  true  faith  of  Thy 
holy  name,  may  have  our  perfect  consummation  and 
bliss,  both  in  body  and  soul,"  is  equally  patient  of  this 
meaning,  even  if  it  does  not  fairly  demand  it.  For  we 
do  not  pray  that  we  may  have  our  consummation  and 
bliss  with  the  departed ;  which  might  imply  that  they 
are  enjoying  these  things  now,  and  that  we  desire  to 
join  them ;  but  we  pray  that  we  with  the  departed  may 
have  our  consummation  and  bliss ;  which  includes 
them  in  the  prayer.  And  the  petition  in  the  Litany, 
"  remember  not.  Lord,  our  offences,  nor  the  offences  of 
our  forefathers,"  may,  or  may  not,  be  a  prayer  for  our 
forefathers,  according  to  the  way  in  which  we  under- 
stand it. 

All  this  seems  to  show  that  neither  Scripture  nor  the 
English  Church  forbids  prayer  for  the  departed ;  that, 
on  the  contrary,  both  of  them  appear  to  give  a  certain 
amount  of  sanction  to  it :  and  that  what  they  allow, 
reason  commends,  and  tradition  recommends  most 
strongly.  It  is  for  each  one  of  us  to  decide  for  himself 
whether  or  no  he  will  take  part  in  the  charitable  work 
thus  placed  before  him.* 

*  See  J.  M.  Neale,  Littirgtes  of  SU  Mark,  St.  James,  St.  Clement, 
St.  Chrysostom,  etc.,  1859,  pp.  2i6 — 224;  C.  E.  Hammond,  Liturgies 
Eastern  and  Western,  1878,  pp.  45,  75,  113,  156,  183,  217,  etc.;  E. 
Burbridge,  Liturgies  and  Offices  of  the  Church,  1 885,  pp.  34,  222,  249; 
M.  Plummer,  Observations  on  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  1 847,  pp. 
125—127;  Church  Quarterly  Review,  April  1880,  pp.  I — 25;  H.  M. 
Luckock,  After  Death,  1879  :  also  various  articles  in  the  Diet,  of  Christ, 
Antiquities,  1875,  l88cx 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

THE  NEED  OF  MACHINERY  FOR  THE  PRESERVA- 
TION AND  TRANSMISSION  OF  THE  FAITH— THE 
MACHINERY  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH 

"  Thou  therefore,  my  child,  be  strengthened  in  the  grace  that  is  in 
Christ  Jesus.  And  the  things  which  thou  hast  heard  from  me  among 
many  witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to  faithful  men,  who  shall  be 
able  to  teach  others  also  " — 2  Tim.  iL  I,  2. 

IN  this  tenderly  affectionate  address  we  have  a  very 
early  indication  of  the  beginnings  of  Christian 
tradition  and  Christian  schools,  two  subjects  intimately 
connected  with  one  another.  St.  Paul  having  pointed 
out  as  a  warning  to  his  "  child  "  Timothy  the  cold  or 
cowardly  behaviour  of  those  in  Asia  who  had  turned 
away  from  him,  and  as  an  example  the  affectionate 
courage  of  Onesiphorus,  returns  to  the  charge  of  which 
this  letter  is  so  full,  that  Timothy  is  "  not  to  be 
ashamed  of  the  testimony  of  our  Lord/'  but  be  willing 
to  "suffer  hardship  with  the  gospel  according  to  the 
power  of  God "  (i.  8).  ^'  Thou  therefore,  my  child," 
with  these  instances  in  mind  on  the  one  hand  and  on 
the  other,  "  be  inwardly  strengthened  in  the  grace  that 
is  in  Christ  Jesus."  In  his  own  strength  he  will  be 
able  to  do  nothing ;  but  in  the  grace  which  Christ 
freely  bestows  on  all  believers  who  ask  it  of  Him, 
Timothy  will  be  able  to  find  all  that  he  needs  for  the 
strengthening  of  his  own  character  and  for  the  instruc- 


33^  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

tion  of  others.  And  here  St.  Paul,  in  a  way  thoroughly 
natural  in  one  who  is  writing  a  letter  which  is  personal 
rather  than  official,  diverges  for  a  moment  to  give 
utterance  to  the  idea  which  passes  through  his  mind 
of  securing  permanence  in  the  instruction  of  the  faith- 
ful. Possibly  it  was  in  reference  to  this  duty  that  he 
feared  the  natural  despondency  and  sensitiveness  of 
Timothy.  Timothy  would  be  likely  to  shrink  from  such 
work,  or  to  do  it  in  a  half-hearted  way.  Or  again  the 
thought  that  this  letter  is  to  summon  Timothy  to  come 
to  him  is  in  his  mind  (iv.  9,  21),  and  he  forthwith 
exhorts  him  to  make  proper  provision  for  continuity  of 
sound  teaching  in  the  Church  committed  to  his  care. 
"  The  things  which  thou  hast  heard  from  me  among 
many  witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to  faithful  men, 
who  shall  be  able  to  teach  others  also."  In  other 
words,  before  leaving  his  flock  in  order  to  visit  his 
spiritual  father  and  friend,  he  is  to  secure  the  estabhsh- 
ment  of  apostolic  tradition.  And  in  order  to  do  this  he 
is  to  establish  a  school, — a  school  of  picked  scholars, 
intelligent  enough  to  appreciate,  and  trustworthy 
enough  to  preserve,  all  that  has  been  handed  down 
from  Christ  and  His  Apostles  respecting  the  essentials 
of  the  Christian  faith.  There  is  only  one  Gospel, — 
that  which  the  Apostles  have  preached  ever  since  the 
Ascension.  It  is  so  well  known,  so  well  authenticated 
both  by  intrinsic  sublimity  and  external  testimony,  that 
no  one  would  be  justified  in  accepting  a  different 
Gospel,  even  upon  the  authority  of  an  angel  from 
heaven.  A  second  Gospel  is  an  impossibility.  That 
which  is  not  identical  with  the  Gospel  which  St.  Paul 
and  the  other  Apostles  have  preached  would  be  no 
Gospel  at  all  (Gal.  i.  6 — 9).  And  this  Divine  and 
Apostolic     Gospel    is    the    Gospel    which    has    been 


11.1,2.]  THE  NEED  OF  MACHINERY.  333 

committed  to  Timothy's  charge.  Let  him  take  all 
reasonable  care  for  its  preservation. 

For  in  the  first  place,  such  care  was  commanded 
from  the  outset.  Christ  has  promised  that  His  truth 
shall  continue  and  shall  prevail.  But  He  has  not  ex- 
empted Christians  from  the  duty  of  preserving  and 
propagating  it.  He,  Who  is  the  Truth,  has  declared 
that  He  is  ever  with  His  Church,  even  unto  the  end  of 
the  world  (Matt,  xxviii.  20) ;  and  in  fulfilment  of  this 
promise  He  has  bestowed  the  Spirit  of  truth  upon  it. 
But  He  has  nowhere  hinted  that  His  Church  is  to  leave 
the  cause  of  His  Gospel  to  take  care  of  itself.  On  the 
contrary,  at  the  very  time  that  He  promised  to  be 
alway  with  His  disciples.  He  prefaced  this  promise 
with  the  command,  "  Go  ye  therefore,  and  make  dis- 
ciples of  all  the  nations,  .  .  .  teaching  them  to  observe 
all  things  whatsoever  I  commanded  you;"  as  if  His 
promise  were  contingent  upon  their  fulfilment  of  this 
charge.  At  the  very  moment  when  the  Church 
received  the  truth,  it  was  told  that  it  had  the  responsi- 
bility of  safeguarding  it  and  making  it  known. 

And,  secondly,  experience  has  proved  how  entirely 
necessary  such  care  is.  The  Gospel  cannot  be  super- 
seded by  any  announcement  possessing  a  larger  measure 
of  truth  and  authority.  So  far  as  the  present  dispen- 
sation goes,  its  claims  are  absolute  and  final.  But  it 
may  be  seriously  misunderstood ;  it  may  be  corrupted 
by  large  admixture  of  error ;  it  may  be  partially  or 
even  totally  forgotten  ;  it  may  be  supplanted  by  some 
meretricious  counterfeit.  There  were  Thessalonians 
who  had  supposed  that  the  Gospel  exempted  them  from 
the  obligation  of  working  to  earn  their  bread.  There 
were  Christians  at  Corinth  and  Ephesus  who  had 
confounded  the  liberty  of  the  Gospel  with  antinomian 


334  ^^/^  SECOND  EPISTLk   TO   TIMOTHV. 

license.  There  was  the  Church  of  Sardis  which  had  so 
completely  forgotten  what  it  had  received,  that  no 
works  of  its  doing  were  found  fulfilled  before  God,  and 
the  remnant  of  truth  and  life  which  survived  was  ready 
to  perish.  And  the  Churches  of  Galatia  had  been  in 
danger  of  casting  on  one  side  the  glories  of  the  Gospel 
and  returning  to  the  bondage  of  the  Law.  Through 
ignorance,  through  neglect,  through  wilful  misrepre- 
sentation or  interested  opposition,  the  truth  might  be 
obscured,  or  depraved,  or  defeated ;  and  there  were 
few  places  where  such  disastrous  results  were  more 
possible  than  at  Ephesus.  Its  restless  activity  in 
commerce  and  speculation  ;  its  worldliness  ;  the  seduct- 
iveness of  its  forms  of  paganism  ; — all  these  constituted 
an  atmosphere  in  which  Christian  truth,  unless  carefully 
protected,  would  be  likely  to  become  tainted  or  be 
ignored.  Even  without  taking  into  account  the  proposal 
that  Timothy  should  leave  Ephesus  for  awhile  and  visit 
the  Apostle  in  his  imprisonment  at  Rome,  it  was  no 
more  than  necessary  precaution  that  he  should  endea- 
vour to  secure  the  establishment  of  a  permanent  centre 
for  preserving  and  handing  on  in  its  integrity  the  faith 
once  for  all  committed  to  the  saints. 

"  The  things  which  thou  hast  heard  from  me  among 
many  witnesses."  The  last  three  words  are  remarkable; 
and  they  are  still  more  remarkable  in  the  original 
Greek.  St.  Paul  does  not  say  simply  "  in  the  presence 
of  many  witnesses "  (^evwTrcov  or  irapovrcov  iroWcov 
fiapTvpwv)  but  "  by  means  of  many  witnesses "  {oia 
iroWwv  fiapTvpcov).  In  the  First  Epistle  (vi.  12)  he 
had  appealed  to  the  good  confession  which  Timothy 
had  made  ^*in  the  sight  of  many  witnesses."  As 
regards  Timothy's  confession  these  were  witnesses  and 
no  more.     They  were  able  for  ever  afterwards  to  testify 


11. 1, 2.]  ^tHE  REED  OF  MACHINERY,  335 

that  he  had  made  it ;  but  they  did  not  help  him  to 
make  it.  The  confession  was  his,  not  theirs,  although 
no  doubt  they  assented  to  it  and  approved  it;  and 
their  presence  in  no  way  affected  its  goodness.  But 
here  those  who  were  present  were  something  more 
than  mere  witnesses  of  what  the  Apostle  said  to 
Timothy  :  they  were  an  integral  part  of  the  proceeding. 
Their  presence  was  an  element  without  which  the 
Apostle's  teaching  would  have  assumed  a  different 
character.  They  were  not  a  mere  audience,  able  to 
testify  as  to  what  was  said;  they  were  guarantees  of 
the  instruction  which  was  given.  The  sentiments  and 
opinions  which  St.  Paul  might  express  in  private  to 
his  disciple,  and  the  authoritative  teaching  which  he 
delivered  to  him  in  public  under  the  sanction  of  many 
witnesses,  were  two  different  things  and  stood  on 
different  grounds.  Timothy  had  often  heard  from  his 
friend  his  personal  views  on  a  variety  of  subjects ;  and 
he  had  often  heard  from  the  Apostle  his  official  testi- 
mony, delivered  solemnly  in  the  congregation,  as  to 
the  truths  of  the  Gospel.  It  is  this  latter  body  of 
instruction,  thus  amply  guaranteed,  of  which  Timothy 
is  to  take  such  care.  He  is  to  treat  it  as  a  treasure 
committed  to  his  charge,  a  precious  legacy  which  he 
holds  in  trust.  And  in  his  turn  he  is  to  commit  it  to 
the  keeping  of  trustworthy  persons,  who  will  know  its 
value,  and  be  capable  of  preserving  it  intact  and  of 
handing  it  on  to  others  as  trustworthy  as  themselves. 

Some  expositors  interpret  the  passage  as  referring, 
not  to  the  Apostle's  public  teaching  as  a  whole,  but 
to  the  instructions  which  he  gave  to  Timothy  at  his 
ordination  respecting  the  proper  discharge  of  his  ofBce ; 
and  the  aorist  tense  (fjfcov'Taf;)  favours  the  view  that 
some  definite  occasion  is  intended  (comp.  I  Tim.  iv.  14; 


336  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

2  Tim.  i.  6).  In  that  case  the  Apostle  is  here  showing 
anxiety  for  the  establishment  of  a  sound  tradition 
respecting  the  duties  of  ministers, — a  very  important 
portion,  but  by  no  means  the  main  portion  of  the 
teaching  which  he  had  imparted.  But  the  aorist  does 
not  compel  us  to  confine  the  allusion  to  some  one 
event,  such  as  Timothy's  ordination  or  baptism  ;  and 
it  seems  more  reasonable  to  understand  the  charge 
here  given  as  a  continuation  of  that  which  occurs 
towards  the  close  of  the  first  chapter.  There  he  says, 
"  Hold  the  pattern  of  sound  words  which  thou  hast 
heard "  (rjKovaa^)  "  from  me ; "  and  here  he  charges 
Timothy  not  merely  to  hold  this  pattern  of  sound 
words  fast  himself,  but  to  take  care  that  it  does  not 
perish  with  him. 

This,  then,  may  be  considered  as  the  earliest  trace 
of  the  formation  of  a  theological  school, — a  school  which 
has  for  its  object  not  merely  the  instruction  of  the 
ignorant,  but  the  protection  and  maintenance  of  a 
definite  body  of  doctrine.  That  which  the  Apostle, 
when  he  was  in  Ephesus,  publicly  taught,  under  the 
sanction  of  a  multitude  of  witnesses,  is  to  be  preserved 
and  handed  on  without  compromise  or  corruption  as 
a  pattern  of  wholesome  doctrine.  There  are  unhealthy 
and  even  deadly  distortions  of  the  truth  in  the  air,  and 
unless  care  is  taken  to  preserve  the  truth,  it  may  easily 
become  possible  to  confuse  weak  and  ignorant  minds 
as  to  what  are  the  essentials  of  the  Christian  faith. 

The  question  as  to  the  earliest  methods  of  Christian 
instruction  and  the  precautions  taken  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  Apostolic  tradition  is  one  of  the  many  particulars 
in  which  our  knowledge  of  the  primitive  Church  is  so 
tantaHzingly  meagre.  A  small  amount  of  information 
is  given  us  in  the  New  Testament,  for  the  most  part 


U.  1,2.]  THE  NEED  OF  MACHINERY.  33I? 

quite  incidentally,  as  here ;  and  then  the  history  runs 
underground,  and  does  not  reappear  for  a  century  or 
more.  The  first  few  generations  of  Christians  did  not 
contain  a  large  number  of  persons  who  were  capable 
of  producing  anything  very  considerable  in  the  way  of 
literature.  Of  those  who  had  the  ability,  not  many 
had  the  leisure  or  the  inclination  to  write.  It  was 
more  important  to  teach  by  word  of  mouth  than  with 
the  pen;  and  where  was  the  use  of  leaving  records 
of  what  was  being  done,  when  (as  was  generally 
believed)  Christ  would  almost  immediately  appear  to 
put  an  end  to  the  existing  dispensation  ?  Out  of  what 
was  written  much,  as  we  know,  has  perished,  includ- 
ing even  documents  of  Apostolic  origin  (Luke  i.  i,  2  ; 
I  Cor.  V.  9 ;  3  John  9).  Therefore,  much  as  we  lament 
the  scantiness  of  the  evidence  that  has  come  down  to 
us,  there  is  nothing  surprising  about  it.  The  marvel 
is,  not  that  so  little  contemporary  history  has  reached 
us,  but  that  so  much  has  done  so.  And  what  it 
behoves  us  to  do  is  to  make  a  sober  use  of  such 
testimony  as  we  possess. 

We  shall  be  doing  no  more  than  drawing  a  reason- 
able conclusion  from  the  passage  before  us  if  we  infer, 
that  what  St.  Paul  enjoins  Timothy  to  do  at  Ephesus 
was  done  in  many  other  Churches  also,  partly  in 
consequence  of  this  Apostolic  injunction,  and  partly 
because  what  he  enjoins  would  be  suggested  in  many 
cases  by  necessity  and  common  sense.  This  inference 
is  confirmed  by  the  fact  that  it  is  precisely  to  the  con- 
tinuity of  doctrine  secured  by  a  regular  succession  of 
authorized  and  official  teachers  in  the  different  Churches 
that  appeal  is  continually  made  by  some  of  the  earliest 
Christian  writers  whose  works  have  come  down  to  us. 
Thus  Hegesippus  (c.  a.d.  170)  gives  as  the  result  of 

22 


33^  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

careful  personal  investigations  at  Corinth,  Rome,  and 
elsewhere,  ''  But  in  every  succession  (of  bishops)  and 
in  every  city  there  prevails  just  what  the  Law  and  the 
Prophets  and  the  Lord  proclaim  "  (Eus.,  H.E.y  IV.  xxii. 
3).  Irenaeus,  in  his  great  work  against  heresies,  which 
was  completed  about  a.d.  185,  says,  "We  can  enumer- 
ate those  who  were  appointed  bishops  by  the  Apostles 
themselves  in  the  different  Churches,  and  their  suc- 
cessors down  to  our  own  day ;  and  they  neither  taught 
nor  acknowledged  any  such  stuff  as  is  raved  by  these 
men.  ,  .  .  But  since  it  would  be  a  long  business  in  a 
work  of  this  kind  to  enumerate  the  successions  in  all 
the  Churches,"  he  selects  as  a  primary  example  that  of 
"  the  very  great  and  ancient  Church,  well  known  to 
all  men,  founded  and  established  by  the  two  most 
glorious  Apostles  Peter  and  Paul."  After  giving  the 
succession  of  Roman  bishops  from  Linus  to  Eleutherus, 
he  glances  at  Smyrna,  presided  over  by  St.  John's 
disciple,  Polycarp,  whose  letter  to  the  Philippian  Church 
shows  what  he  believed,  and  at  Ephesus,  founded  as 
a  Church  by  St.  Paul  and  presided  over  by  St.  John, 
until  the  times  of  Trajan  (III.  iii.  I — 3).  Again  he 
says,  that,  although  there  may  be  different  opinions 
respecting  single  passages  of  Scripture,  yet  there  can 
be  none  as  to  the  sum  total  of  its  contents,  viz.  'Hhat 
which  the  Apostles  have  deposited  in  the  Church  as 
the  fulness  of  truth,  and  which  has  been  preserved  in 
the  Church  by  the  succession  of  bishops."  And  again, 
still  more  definitely,  *^  The  Church,  though  dispersed 
throughout  the  whole  world  even  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth,  has  received  from  the  Apostles  and  their  dis- 
ciples the  belief  in  one  God,  Father  Almighty,  etc.  .  .  . 
Having  received  this  preaching  and  this  belief,  the 
Church,  as  we  said  before,  although  dispersed  about 


ii.  I,  2.]  THE  NEED  OF  MACHINERY.  339 

the  whole  world,  carefully  guards  it,  as  if  dwelling  in 
one  house;  and  she  believes  these  things,  as  if  she 
had  but  one  soul  and  one  and  the  same  heart,  and 
•  with  perfect  concord  she  preaches  them  and  teaches 
them  and  hands  them  down,  as  if  she  possessed  but 
one,  mouth.  For  although  the  languages  up  and  down 
the  world  are  different,  yet  the  import  of  the  tradition 
is  one  and  the  same.  For  neither  the  Churches  which 
are  established  in  Germany  believe  anything  different 
or  hand  down  anything  different,  nor  in  Spain,  nor  in 
Gaul,  nor  throughout  the  East,  nor  in  Egypt,  nor  in 
Libya,  nor  those  established  about  the  central  regions 
of  the  earth.  .  .  .  And  neither  will  he  who  is  very 
mighty  in  word  among  those  who  preside  in  the 
Churches  utter  different  [doctrines]  from  these  (for  no 
one  is  above  the  Master),  nor  will  he  who  is  weak  in 
speaking  lessen  the  tradition"  (1.  x.  I,  2).  Clement 
of  Alexandria  (c.  a.d  200)  tells  us  that  he  had  studied 
in  Greece,  Italy,  and  the  East,  under  teachers  from 
Ionia,  Coelesyria,  Assyria,  and  Palestine ;  and  he 
writes  of  his  teachers  thus  :  "  These  men,  preserving 
the  true  tradition  of  the  blessed  teaching  directly  from 
Peter  and  James,  from  John  and  Paul,  the  holy  Apostles, 
son  receiving  it  from  father  (but  few  are  they  who  are 
like  their  fathers),  came  by  God's  providence  even  to 
us,  to  deposit  among  us  those  seeds  which  are  ancestral 
and  apostolic  "  {Strom. y  I.  p.  322,  ed.  Potter).  TertuUian 
in  like  manner  appeals  to  the  unbroken  tradition,  reach- 
ing back  to  the  Apostles,  in  a  variety  of  Churches : 
"  Run  over  the  Apostolic  Churches,  in  which  the  very 
chairs  of  the  Apostles  still  preside  in  their  places,  in 
which  their  own  authentic  writings  are  read,  uttering 
the  voice  and  representing  the  face  of  each  of  them ; " 
and  he  mentions  in  particular  Corinth,  Philippi,  Thessa- 


340  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

lonica,  Ephesus,  and  Rome.  ''Is  it  likely  that  Churches 
of  such  number  and  weight  should  have  strayed  into 
one  and  the  same  faith  ? "  {De  Prces.  Hcer.,  xxviii., 
xxxvi.). 

This  evidence  is  quite  sufficient  to  prove  that  what 
St.  Paul  charged  Timothy  to  do  at  Ephesus  was  done 
not  only  there  but  at  all  the  chief  centres  of  the 
Christian  Church :  viz.,  that  everywhere  great  care 
was  taken  to  provide  continuity  of  authoritative  teach- 
ing respecting  the  articles  of  the  faith.  It  indicates 
also  that  as  a  rule  the  bishop  in  each  place  was 
regarded  as  the  custodian  of  the  deposit,  who  was  to  be 
chiefly  responsible  for  its  preservation.  But  the  precise 
method  or  methods  (for  there  was  probably  different 
machinery  in  different  places)  by  which  this  was 
accomplished,  cannot  now  be  ascertained.  It  is  not 
until  near  the  end  of  the  second  century  that  we  begin 
to  get  anything  like  precise  information  as  to  the  way 
in  which  Christian  instruction  was  given,  whether  to 
believers  or  heathen,  in  one  or  two  of  the  principal 
centres  of  Christendom  ;  e.g.,  Alexandria,  Csesarea,  and 
Jerusalem. 

St.  Paul  himself  had  ruled  that  a  bishop  must  be 
"apt  to  teach"  (i  Tim.  iii.  2;  comp.  Tit.  i.  9);  and 
although  we  have  no  reason  to  suppose  that  as  a  rule 
the  bishop  was  the  only  or  even  the  chief  instructor, 
yet  he  probably  selected  the  teachers,  as  Timothy  is 
directed  to  do  here.  In  the  great  Catechetical  School 
of  Alexandria  the  appointment  of  what  we  should  now. 
call  the  Rector  or  senior  professor  was  in  the  hands  of 
the  bishop.  And,  as  we  might  expect,  bishops  selected 
clergy  for  this  most  important  office.  It  forms  one  of 
the  many  contrasts  between  primitive  Christianity  and 
heathenism,  that  Christians  did,  and  pagans  did  not, 


ii.  1,2.]  THE  NEED   OF  MACHINERY.  34I 

regard  it  as  one  of  the  functions  of  the  priesthood  to 
give  instruction  in  the  traditional  faith.  The  heathen 
clergy,  if  consulted,  would  give  information  respecting 
the  due  performance  of  rites  and  ceremonies,  and  the 
import  of  omens  and  dreams ;  but  of  their  giving 
systematic  teaching  as  to  what  was  to  be  believed 
respecting  the  gods,  there  is  no  trace. 

It  is  more  than  probable  that  a  great  deal  of  the 
instruction  both  to  candidates  for  baptism  and  candi- 
dates for  the  ministry  was  from  very  early  times 
reduced  to  something  like  a  formula ;  even  before  the 
dangers  of  corruption  arising  from  Gnosticism  rendered 
this  necessary,  we  may  believe  that  it  took  place.  We 
know  that  the  Gospel  history  was  in  the  first  instance 
taught  orally ;  and  the  oral  instruction  very  soon  fell 
into  something  that  approached  to  a  stereotyped  form. 
This  would  probably  be  the  case  with  regard  to  state- 
ments of  the  essentials  of  the  Christian  faith.  In 
Ignatius  {Philad.^  ^iii-)>  J>Jstin  Martyr  (Apol.y  I.  61,  66), 
and  in  Irenaeus  {Hoer.,  I.  x.  i)  we  can  trace  what  may 
well  have  been  formulas  in  common  use.  But  it  is  not 
until  the  middle  of  the  fourth  century  that  we  get  a 
complete  example  of  the  systematic  instruction  given 
by  a  Christian  teacher,  in  the  Catechetical  Lectures  ot 
St.  Cyril,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  delivered,  however, 
before  his  episcopate. 

But  what  is  certain  respecting  the  earliest  ages  of  the 
Church  is  this  ;  that  in  every  Church  regular  instruction 
in  the  faith  was  given  by  persons  in  authority  specially 
selected  for  this  work,  and  that  frequent  intercourse 
between  the  Churches  showed  that  the  substance  of  the 
instruction  given  was  in  all  cases  the  same,  whether 
the  form  of  words  was  identical  or  not.  These  facts, 
which  do  not  by  any  means  stand  alone,  are  conclusive 


342  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

against  the  hypothesis,  that  between  the  Crucifixion 
and  the  middle  of  the  second  century,  a  complete 
revolution  in  the  creed  was  effected ;  and  that  the 
traditional  belief  of  Christians  is  not  that  which  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  taught,  but  a  perversion  of  it  which  owes 
its  origin  mainly  to  the  overwhelming  influence  of  His 
professed  follower,  but  virtual  supplanter,  Saul  of 
Tarsus. 


CHAPTER    XXX. 

THE   CHRISTIAN'S  LIFE  AS  MILITARY  SERVICE ;  AS 
AN  ATHLETIC   CONTEST;  AS  HUSBANDRY. 

"Suffer  hardships  with  me,  as  a  good  soldier  of  Christ  Jesus.  No 
soldier  on  service  entangleth  himself  in  the  affairs  of  this  life  ;  that  he 
may  please  him  who  enrolled  him  as  a  soldier.  And  if  also  a  man 
contend  in  the  games,  he  is  not  crowned,  except  he  have  contended 
lawfully.  The  husbandman  that  laboureth  must  be  the  first  to  par- 
take of  the  fruits.  Consider  what  I  say  ;  for  the  Lord  shall  give  thee 
understanding  in  all  things." — 2  Tim.  ii.  3 — 7, 

ST.  Paul  represents  the  Christian  life  and  the 
Christian  ministry  under  a  variety  of  figures. 
Sometimes  as  husbandry ;  as  when  he  tells  the 
Galatians  that  "  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall 
he  also  reap  ;  "  and  that  "  in  due  season  we  shall  reap, 
if  we  faint  not "  (Gal.  vi.  7,  9) ;  or  when  he  reminds 
the  Corinthians  that  ''  he  that  ploweth  ought  to  plow 
in  hope,  and  he  that  thresheth,  to  thresh  in  hope  of 
partaking"  (i  Cor.  ix.  lo).  Sometimes  as  an  athletic 
contest;  as  when  he  tells  the  Corinthians  that  "  every 
man  who  striveth  in  the  games  is  temperate  in  all 
things"  (i  Cor  ix.  25);  or  the  Ephesians  that  '^our 
wrestling  is  not  against  flesh  and  blood,  but  against  the 
principalities,  against  the  powers,  against  the  world- 
rulers  of  this  darkness,  against  the  spiritual  hosts  of 
wickedness  in  the  heavenly  places"  (Eph.  vi.  12). 
Sometimes,  and  most  frequently,  as  military  service; 
as  when  he  charges  the  Thessalonians  to  "  put  on  the 


344  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

breastplate  of  faith  and  love,  and  for  a  helmet  the  hope 
of  salvation  "  (i  Thess.  v.  8)  ;  or  when  he  vi^rites  to  the 
Philippians  of  Epaphroditus  as  his  "fellow-soldier" 
(Phil.  ii.  25). 

In  the  passage  before  us  he  makes  use  of  all  three 
figures  :  but  the  one  of  which  he  seems  to  have  been 
most  fond  is  the  one  which  he  places  first, — that  of 
military  service.  "  Suffer  hardships  with  me,"  or 
"take  thy  share  in  suffering,"  as  a  good  soldier  of 
Christ  Jesus.  No  soldier  on  service  entangleth  him- 
self in  the  affairs  of  this  life ;  that  he  may  please  him 
who  enrolled  him  as  a  soldier."  He  had  used  the  same 
kind  of  language  in  the  First  Epistle,  urging  Timothy 
to  "  war  the  good  warfare "  and  to  "  fight  the  good 
fight  of  faith"  (i.  18;  vi.  12).  Every  Christian,  and 
especially  every  Christian  minister,  may  be  regarded  as 
a  soldier,  as  an  athlete,  as  a  husbandman  ;  but  of  the 
three  similitudes  the  one  which  fits  him  best  is  that  of 
a  soldier. 

Even  if  this  were  not  so,  St.  Paul's  fondness  for  the 
metaphor  would  be  very  intelligible. 

I.  Military  service  was  very  familiar  to  him, 
especially  in  his  imprisonments.  He  had  been  arrested 
by  soldiers  at  Jerusalem,  escorted  by  troops  to  Caesarea, 
sent  under  the  charge  of  a  centurion  and  a  band  of 
soldiers  to  Rome,  and  had  been  kept  there  under 
military  surveillance  for  many  months  in  the  first 
Roman  imprisonment,  and  for  we  know  not  how  long 
in  the  second.  And  we  may  assume  it  as  almost 
certain  that  the  place  of  his  imprisonment  was  near  the 
praetorian  camp.  This  would  probably  be  so  ordered 
for  the  convenience  of  the  soldiers  who  had  charge  of 
him.  He  therefore  had  very  large  opportunities  of 
observing   very    closely    all    the    details    of   ordinary 


11. 3-7]  THE  CHRISTIAN  AS  A  SOLDIER.  345 

military  life.  He  must  frequently  have  seen  soldiers 
under  drill,  on  parade,  on  guard,  on  the  march ;  must 
have  watched  them  cleaning,  mending,  and  sharpening 
their  weapons ;  putting  their  armour  on,  putting  it  off. 
Often  during  hours  of  enforced  inactivity  he  must  have 
compared  these  details  with  the  details  of  the  Christian 
life,  and  noticed  how  admirably  they  corresponded  with 
one  another. 

2.  Military  service  was  not  only  very  familiar  to 
himself;  it  was  also  quite  sufficiently  familiar  to  those 
whom  he  addressed.  Roman  troops  were  everywhere 
to  be  seen  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the 
Empire,  and  nearly  every  member  of  society  knew 
something  of  the  kind  of  life  which  a  soldier  of  the 
Empire  had  to  lead. 

3.  The  Roman  army  was  the  one  great  organization 
of  which  it  was  still  possible,  in  that  age  of  boundless 
social  corruption,  to  think  and  speak  with  right-minded 
admiration  and  respect.  No  doubt  it  was  often  the 
instrument  of  wholesale  cruelties  as  it  pushed  forward 
its  conquests,  or  strengthened  its  hold,  over  resisting 
or  rebelling  nations.  But  it  promoted  discipline  and 
esprit  de  corps.  Even  during  active  warfare  it  checked 
individual  license  ;  and  when  the  conquest  was  over 
it  was  the  representative  and  mainstay  of  order  and 
justice  against  high-handed  anarchy  and  wrong.  Its 
officers  several  times  appear  in  the  narrative  portions 
of  the  New  Testament,  and  they  make  a  favourable 
impression  upon  us.  If  they  are  fair  specimens  of  the 
military  men  in  the  Roman  Empire  at  that  period,  then 
the  Roman  army  must  have  been  indeed  a  fine  service. 
There  is  the  centurion  whose  faith  excited  even  Christ's 
admiration  ;  the  centurion  who  confessed  Christ's 
righteousness   and    Divine   origin    at   the   crucifixion; 


346  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

Cornelius,  of  the  Italian  cohort,  to  whom  St.  Peter  was 
sent ;  C.  Lysias,  the  chief  captain  or  tribune  who 
rescued  St.  Paul,  first  from  the  mob,  and  then  from  the 
conspiracy  to  assassinate  him ;  and  Julius,  who  out  of 
consideration  for  St.  Paul  prevented  the  soldiers  from 
killing  the  prisoners  in  the  shipwreck. 

But  the  reasons  for  the  Apostle's  preference  for  this 
similitude  go  deeper  than  all  this. 

4.  Mihtary  service  involves  self-sacrifice,  endurance, 
discipline,  vigilance,  obedience,  ready  co-operation  with 
others,  sympathy,  enthusiasm,  loyalty.  Tertullian  in 
his  Address  to  Martyrs  draws  with  characteristic 
incisiveness  the  stern  parallel  beween  the  severity  of  the 
soldier's  life  and  that  of  the  Christian.  '*  Be  it  so,  that 
even  to  Christians  a  prison  is  distasteful.  We  were 
called  to  active  service  under  the  Living  God  from  the 
very  moment  of  our  response  to  the  baptismal  formula. 
No  soldier  comes  to  the  war  surrounded  by  luxuries, 
nor  goes  into  action  from  a  comfortable  bed-room,  but 
from  the  make-shift  and  narrow  tent,  where  every  kind 
of  hardness  and  severity  and  unpleasantness  is  to  be 
found.  Even  in  peace  soldiers  learn  betimes  to  suffer 
warfare  by  toil  and  discomforts,  by  marching  in  arms, 
running  over  the  drill-ground,  working  at  trench- 
making,  constructing  the  tortoise,  till  the  sweat  runs 
again.  In  the  sweat  of  the  brow  all  things  are  dune, 
lest  body  and  mind  should  shrink  at  changes  from 
shade  to  sunshine,  and  from  sunshine  to  frost,  from  the 
dress  of  ease  to  the  coat  of  mail,  from  stillness  to 
shouting,  from  quiet  to  the  din  of  war.  In  like  manner 
do  ye,  O  blessed  ones,  account  whatever  is  hard  in 
this  your  lot  as  discipline  of  the  powers  of  your  mind 
and  body.  Ye  are  about  to  enter  for  the  good  fight,  in 
which  the  Living  God^  gives  the  prizes,  and  the  Holy 


ii.3-7-]  'I^HE  CHRISTIAN  AS  A  SOLDIER.  347 

Spirit  prepares  the  combatants,  and  the  crown  is  the 
eternal  prize  of  an  angel's  nature,  citizenship  in  heaven, 
glory  for  ever  and  ever.  Therefore  your  trainer, 
Jesus  Christ,  Who  has  anointed  you  with  the  Spirit  and 
led  you  forth  to  this  arena,  has  seen  good  to  separate 
you  from  a  state  of  freedom  for  rougher  treatment,  that 
power  may  be  made  strong  in  you.  For  the  athletes 
also  are  set  apart  for  stricter  discipline,  that  they  may 
have  time  to  build  up  their  strength.  They  are  kept 
from  luxury,  from  daintier  meats,  from  too  pleasant 
drink ;  they  are  driven,  tormented,  distressed.  The 
harder  their  labours  in  training,  the  greater  their  hopes 
of  victory.  And  they  do  it,  says  the  Apostle,  that 
they  may  obtain  a  corruptible  crown.  We,  with  an 
eternal  crown  to  obtain,  look  upon  the  prison  as  our 
training-ground,  that  we  may  be  led  to  the  arena  of  the 
judgment-seat  well  disciplined  by  every  kind  of  dis- 
comfort :  because  virtue  is  built  up  by  hardness,  but 
by  softness  is  overthrown  "  {Ad  Mart.y  iii).  It  will  be 
observed  that  Tertullian  passes  by  an  easy  transition 
from  training  for  military  service  to  training  for  athletic 
contests.  The  whole  passage  is  little  more  than  a 
graphic  amplification  of  what  St.  Paul  writes  to 
Timothy. 

5.  But  military  service  implies,  what  athletic  contests 
do  not,  vigilant,  unwearying,  and  organized  opposition 
to  a  vigilant,  unwearying,  and  organized  foe.  In  many 
athletic  contests  one's  opponent  is  a  rival  rather  than 
an  enemy.  He  may  defeat  us;  but  he  inflicts  no 
injury.  He  may  win  the  prizes  ;  but  he  takes  nothing 
of  ours.  And  even  in  the  more  deadly  conflicts  of  the 
amphitheatre  the  enemy  is  very  different  from  an  enemy 
in  war.  The  combat  is  between  individuals,  not  armies ; 
it   is   the   exception   and   not   the   rule;  it   is  strictly 


348  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY, 

limited  in  time  and  place,  not  for  all  times  and  all 
places ;  it  is  a  duel  and  not  a  campaign, — still  less  a 
prolonged  war.  Military  service  is  either  perpetual 
warfare  or  perpetual  preparation  for  it.  And  just  such 
is  the  Christian  life  :  it  is  either  a  conflict,  or  a  prepara- 
tion for  one.  The  soldier,  so  long  as  he  remains  in 
the  service,  can  never  say,  "  I  may  lay  aside  my  arms 
and  my  drill  :  all  enemies  are  conquered  :  there  will 
never  be  another  war."  And  the  Christian,  so  long  as 
he  remains  in  this  world,  can  never  think  that  he  may 
cease  to  watch  and  to  pray,  because  the  victory  is  won, 
and  he  will  never  be  tempted  any  more.  It  is  for  this 
reason  that  he  cannot  allow  himself  to  be  "entangled 
in  the  affairs  of  this  life."  The  soldier  on  service 
avoids  this  error  :  he  knows  that  it  would  interfere 
with  his  promotion.  The  Christian  must  avoid  it  at 
least  as  carefully ;  for  he  is  always  on  service,  and  the 
loss  of  promotion  is  the  loss  of  eternal  life. 

Observe  that  St.  Paul  does  not  suggest  that  Chris- 
tians should  keep  aloof  from  the  affairs  of  this  life, 
which  would  be  a  flat  contradiction  of  what  he  teaches 
elsewhere.  The  Christian  is  to  "  do  his  own  business, 
and  to  work  with  his  hands,  that  he  may  walk  honestly 
toward  them  that  are  without,  and  may  have  need  of 
nothing"  (i  Thess.  iv.  ii,  12).  He  has  a  duty  to  per- 
form "in  the  affairs  of  this  life,"  but  in  doing  it  he 
is  not  to  be  entangled  in  them.  They  are  means,  not 
ends ;  and  must  be  made  to  help  him  on,  not  suffered 
to  keep  him  back.  If  they  become  entanglements 
instead  of  opportunities,  he  will  soon  lose  that  state  of 
constant  preparation  and  alertness,  which  is  the  indis- 
pensable condition  of  success. 

The  same  thought  is  brought  out  in  the  second 
metaphor  by  the  word  "lawfully."     The  athlete  who 


ii.3-7.]         THE   CHRISTIAN  AS  AN  ATHLETE,  349 

competes  in  the  games  does  not  receive  a  crown,  un- 
less he  has  contended  lawfully,  i.e.y  according  to  rule 
(yo^LlJL(o<^,  vofios;).  Even  if  he  seems  to  be  victorious, 
he  nevertheless  is  not  crowned,  because  he  has  violated 
the  well-known  conditions.  And  what  is  the  rule, 
what  are  the  conditions  of  the  Christian's  contest  ? 
"  If  aay  man  would  come  after  Me,  let  him  deny 
himself,  and  take  up  his  cross,  and  follow  Me."  If  we 
wish  to  share  Christ's  victory,  we  must  be  ready  to 
share  His  suffering.  No  cross,  no  crown.  To  try  to 
withdraw  oneself  from  all  hardship  and  annoyance,  to 
attempt  to  avoid  all  that  is  painful  or  disagreeable,  is 
a  violation  of  the  rules  of  the  arena.  This,  it  would 
appear,  Timothy  was  in  some  respects  tempted  to  do : 
and  timidity  and  despondency  must  not  be  allowed  to 
get  the  upper  hand.  Not  that  what  is  painful,  or  dis- 
tasteful, or  unpopular,  is  necessarily  right;  but  it  is 
certainly  not  necessarily  wrong:  and  to  try  to  avoid 
everything  that  one  dislikes  is  to  ensure  being  fatally 
wrong.  So  that,  as  Chrysostom  says,  "  it  behoves 
thee  not  to  complain,  if  thou  endurest  hardness ;  but  to 
complain,  if  thou  dost  not  endure  hardness." 

Chrysostom  and  some  modern  commentators  make 
the  striving  lawfully  include  not  only  the  observance 
of  the  rules  of  the  contest,  but  the  previous  training 
and  preparation.  *^ What  is  meant  by  lawfully?  It  is 
not  enough  that  he  is  anointed,  and  even  engages, 
unless  he  complies  with  all  the  regulations  of  training 
with  respect  to  diet,  temperance,  and  sobriety,  and  all 
the  rules  of  the  wrestling-school.  Unless,  in  short, 
he  go  through  all  that  is  befitting  a  wrestler,  he  is  not 
crowned."  This  makes  good  sense,  if  ^^is  not  crowned" 
be  interpreted  to  mean  ''is  not  likely  to  be  first," 
rather  than  "  does  not  receive  the  crown,  even  if  he  is 


350  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

first."  A  victorious  athlete  is  rightly  deprived  of  the 
reward,  if  he  has  violated  the  conditions  of  the  contest : 
but  no  one  ever  yet  heard  of  a  victor  being  refused  the 
prize  because  he  had  not  trained  properly.  Moreover, 
there  are  enough  examples  to  show  that  **  lawfully " 
(z/o/i//xwv)  does  sometimes  include  the  training  as  well 
as  the  contest. 

But  this  does  not  seem  to  be  St.  Paul's  meaning.  In 
the  first  similitude  he  takes  no  account  of  the  time 
which  precedes  the  soldier's  service,  during  which  he 
may  be  supposed  to  be  preparing  himself  for  it.  The 
Christian's  life  and  the  soldier's  service  are  regarded  as 
co-extensive,  and  there  is  no  thought  of  any  previous 
period.  So  also  in  the  second  similitude.  The 
Christian's  life  and  the  athlete's  contest  are  regarded 
as  co-extensive,  and  no  account  is  taken  of  anything 
that  may  have  preceded.  Baptism  is  entering  the  Hsts, 
not  entering  the  training-school ;  and  the  only  rules 
under  consideration  are  the  rules  of  the  arena. 

No  doubt  there  are  analogies  between  the  training- 
school  and  Christian  discipline,  and  St.  Paul  sometimes 
makes  use  of  them  (i  Cor.  ix.  25,  27);  but  they  do 
not  seem  to  be  included  in  the  present  metaphor. 

But  it  is  about  the  third  similitude  that  there  has 
been  most  discussion.  *'The  husbandman  that 
laboureth  must  be  the  first  to  partake  of  the  fruits : " 
not,  as  the  A.  V.,  "must  be  first  partaker  of  the 
fruits ; "  which  seems  to  imply  that  he  must  partake 
of  the  fruits  before  he  labours.  What  is  the  meaning 
of  "  first "  ?  Some  commentators  resort  to  the  rather 
desperate  hypothesis  that  this  word  is  misplaced,  as  it 
sometimes  is  in  careless  writing  and  conversation  :  and 
they  suppose  that  what  St.  Paul  means  is,  that  "  the 
husbandman,  who  labours  first,  must  then  partake  of 


ii.3-7-]      THE   CHRISTIAN  AS  A   HUSBANDMAN.  351 

the  fruits,"  or,  more  clearly,  "  the  husbandman,  who 
wishes  to  partake  of  the  fruits,  must  first  of  all  labour." 
The  margin  of  the  A.  V.  suggests  a  similar  translation. 
But  this  is  to  credit  the  Apostle  with  great  clumsiness 
of  expression.  And  even  if  this  transposition  of  the 
''  first "  could  be  accepted  as  probable,  there  still 
remains  the  fact  that  we  have  the  present  and  not  the 
aorist  participle  (^KOiriMura  and  not  KoirtdaavTa).  Had 
St.  Paul  meant  what  is  supposed,  he  would  have  said 
**The  husbandman  who  /f^s  first  labottredy^  not  ^' who 
labours  first."  But  there  is  no  transposition  of  the 
'*  first."  The  order  of  the  Greek  shows  that  the 
emphatic  word  is  "  labours."  "  It  is  the  labouring 
husbandman  who  must  be  the  first  to  partake  of  the 
fruits."  It  is  the  man  who  works  hard  and  with  a  will, 
and  not  the  one  who  works  listlessly  or  looks  des- 
pondently on,  who,  according  to  all  moral  fitness  and 
the  nature  of  things,  ought  to  have  the  first  share  in 
the  fruits.  This  interpretation  does  justice  to  the 
Greek  as  it  stands,  without  resorting  to  any  manipulation 
of  the  Apostle's  language.  Moreover,  it  brings  the 
saying  into  perfect  harmony  with  the  context. 

It  is  quite  evident  that  the  three  metaphors  are 
parallel  to  one  another  and  are  intended  to  teach  the 
same  lesson.  In  each  of  them  we  have  two  things 
placed  side  by  side, — a  prize  and  the  method  to  be 
observed  in  obtaining  it.  Do  you,  as  a  Christian 
soldier  on  service,  wish  for  the  approbation  of  Him 
who  has  enrolled  you  ?  Then  you  must  avoid  the 
entanglements  which  would  interfere  with  your  service. 
Do  you,  as  a  Christian  athlete,  wish  for  the  crown  of 
victory  ?  Then  you  must  not  evade  the  rules  of  the 
contest.  Do  you,  as  a  Christian  husbandman,  wish  to 
be  among  the  first  to  enjoy  the  harvest?     Then  you 


352  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHV, 

must  be  foremost  in  toil.  And  the  Apostle  draws 
attention  to  the  importance  of  the  lesson  of  self-devotion 
and  endurance,  inculcated  under  these  three  impressive 
figures,  by  adding,  "  Consider  what  I  say ;  for  the 
Lord  shall  give  thee  understanding  in  all  things." 
That  is,  He  has  confidence  that  His  disciple  will  be 
enabled  to  draw  the  right  conclusion  from  these 
metaphors;  and  having  done  so,  will  have  grace  to 
apply  it  to  his  own  case, 

Timothy  is  not  the  only  Christian,  or  the  only 
minister,  who  is  in  danger  of  being  disgusted,  and 
disheartened,  and  dismayed,  by  the  coldness  and 
apathy  of  professing  friends,  and  by  the  hostility  and 
contempt  of  secret  or  open  enemies.  We  all  of  us 
need  at  times  to  be  reminded  that  here  we  have  no 
abiding  "city,  but  that  our  citizenship  is  in  heaven. 
And  we  all  of  us  are  at  times  inclined  to  murmur, 
because  the  rest  for  which  we  so  often  yearn,  is  not 
given  us  here  ; — a  rest  from  toil,  a  rest  from  temptation, 
and  a  rest  from  sin.  Such  a  sabbath-rest  is  the  prize 
in  store  for  us ;  but  we  cannot  have  it  here.  And  if 
we  desire  to  have  it  hereafter,  we  must  keep  the  rules 
of  the  arena ;  and  the  rules  are  self-control,  self-sacrt- 
ficCf  and  work. 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 

THE  POWER  OF  A  BELIEF  IN  THE  RESURRECTION 
AND  THE  INCARNATION—THE  GOSPEL  OF  ST. 
PAUL. 

"Remember  Jesus  Christ,  risen  from  the  dead,  of  the  seed  of  David, 
according  to  my  gospel :  wherein  I  suffer  hardship  unto  bonds,  as  a 
malefactor;  but  the  word  of  God  is  not  bound.  Therefore  I  endure 
all  things  for  the  elects'  sake,  that  they  also  may  obtain  the  salvation 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  with  eternal  glory." — 2  Tim.  ii.  8 — lo. 

THESE  words  are  a  continuation  of  the  same  subject. 
They  are  additional  thoughts  supphed  to  the 
Apostle's  beloved  disciple  to  induce  him  to  take 
courage  and  to  bear  willingly  and  thankfully  whatever 
difficulties  and  sufferings  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  in 
all  its  fulness  may  involve.  In  the  three  metaphors 
just  preceding,  St.  Paul  has  indicated  that  there  is 
nothing  amazing,  nothing  that  ought  to  cause  perplexity 
or  despondency,  in  the  fact  that  ministers  of  the  word 
have  to  encounter  much  opposition  and  danger.  On 
the  contrary,  such  things  are  the  very  conditions  of  the 
situation  ;  they  are  the  very  rules  of  the  course.  One 
would  have  to  suspect  that  there  was  something 
seriously  amiss,  if  they  did  not  occur ;  and  without 
them  there  would  be  no  chance  of  reward.  Here  he 
goes  on  to  point  out  that  this  hardship  and  suffering  is 
very  far  from  being  mere  hardship  and  suffering;  it  has 
its  bright  side  and  its  compensations,  even  in  this  life. 

23 


3^4  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

Throughout  this  section  it  is  well  worth  while  to 
notice  the  very  considerable  improvements  which  the 
Revisers  have  made  in  it.  One  or  two  of  these  have 
been  already  noticed ;  but  for  convenience  some  of  the 
principal  instances  are  here  collected  together. 

"  Suffer  hardship  with  me/'  or  "  Take  thy  part  in 
suffering  hardship,"  is  better  than  *'  Thou  therefore 
endure  hardship,"  which  while  inserting  a  spurious 
"  therefore,"  omits  the  important  intimation  that  the 
hardship  to  which  Timothy  is  invited  is  one  which 
others  are  enduring,  and  which  he  is  called  upon,  not 
to  bear  alone,  but  to  share.  "  No  soldier  on  service  " 
is  better  than  "  No  man  that  warreth,"  and  "  if  also  a 
man  contend  in  the  games  "  is  more  definite  than  the 
vague  "  if  a  man  also  strive  for  masteries."  The  ambi- 
guity of  "  must  be  first  partaker  of  the  fruits "  is 
avoided  in  "  must  be  the  first  to  partake  of  the  fruits." 
But  perhaps  none  of  these  corrections  are  so  important 
as  those  in  the  passage  now  before  us.  ''  Remember 
that  Jesus  Christ  of  the  seed  of  David,  was  raised  from 
the  dead,  according  to  my  gospel,"  gives  quite  a  wrong 
turn  to  St.  Paul's  language.  It  puts  the  clauses  in  the 
wrong  order,  and  gives  an  erroneous  impression  as  to 
what  is  to  be  remembered.  Timothy  is  charged  to 
"  remember  Jesus  Christ ; "  and  in  remembering  Him 
he  is  to  think  of  Him  as  one  Who  is  "risen  from  the 
dead,"  and  Who  is  also  "of  the  seed  of  David."  These 
are  central  facts  of  the  Gospel  which  St.  Paul  has 
always  preached ;  they  have  been  his  support  in  all  his 
sufferings  ;  and  they  will  be  the  same  support  to  the 
disciple  as  they  have  been  to  the  master. 

"  Remember  Jesus  Christ."  Every  Christian,  who 
has  to  endure  what  seem  to  him  to  be  hardships,  will 
sooner  or  later  fall  back  upon  this  remembrance.     He 


ii.8-io.]  POWER  OF  BELIEF  IN  THE  RESURRECTION.  355 

is  not  the  first,  and  not  the  chief  sufferer  in  the  world. 
There  is  One  Who  has  undergone  hardships,  compared 
with  which  those  of  other  men  sink  into  nothingness ; 
and  Who  has  expressly  told  those  Who  wish  to  be  His 
disciples,  that  they  must  follow  Him  along  the  path  of 
suffering.  It  is  specially  in  this  respect  that  the 
servant  is  not  above  his  Lord.  And  just  in  proportion 
as  we  are  true  servants  will  the  remembrance  of  Jesus 
Christ  help  us  to  welcome  what  He  lays  upon  us  as 
proof  that  He  recognizes  and  accepts  our  service. 

But  merely  to  remember  Jesus  Christ  as  a  Master 
Who  has  suffered,  and  Who  has  made  suffering  a  con- 
dition of  service,  will  not  be  a  permanently  sustaining 
or  comforting  thought,  if  it  ends  there.  Therefore  St. 
Paul  says  to  his  perplexed  and  desponding  delegate, 
"  Remember  Jesus  Christ  as  one  i^isen  from  the  dead^ 
Jesus  Christ  has  not  only  endured  every  kind  of 
suffering,  including  its  extreme  form,  death,  but  He  has 
conquered  it  all  by  rising  again.  He  is  not  only  the 
sinless  Sufferer,  but  also  the  triumphant  Victor  over  ^■ 
death  and  hell.  He  has  set  us  an  example  of  heroic 
endurance  in  obedience  to  the  will  of  God ;  but  He  has  I 
also  secured  for  us  that  our  endurance  in  imitation  I 
of  Him  shall  be  crowned  with  victory.  Had  Christ's  / 
mission  ended  on  Calvary,  He  would  but  have  given 
to  the  world  a  purified  form  of  Stoicism,  a  refined 
"philosophy  of  suffering;"  and  His  teaching  would 
have  failed,  as  Stoicism  failed,  because  a  mere  philo- 
sophy of  suffering  is  quickly  proved  by  experience  to 
be  a  ^'  philosophy  of  despair."  Renan  remarks  with 
truth,  that  the  gospel  of  Marcus  Aurelius  fortifies,  but 
does  not  console :  and  all  teaching  is  doomed  from  the 
outset,  which  comes  to  a  groaning  and  travailing 
humanity  without  any  consolations  to  bestow.     What 


356  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

is  the  thought  which  through  long  centuries  has 
wrung,  and  is  still  wringing  millions  of  human  hearts 
with  anguish  ?  It  is  the  thought  of  the  existence  and 
not  only  the  existence  but  the  apparent  predominance ^ 
of  evil.  Everyw^here  experience  seems  to  teach  us  that 
evil  of  every  kind,  physical,  intellectual,  and  moral, 
holds  the  field  and  appears  likely  to  hold  it.  To  allow 
oneself  to  be  mastered  by  this  thought  is  to  be  on  the 
road  to  doubting  God's  moral  government  of  the  world. 
What  is. the  antidote  to  it?  ^*  Remember  Jesus  Christ 
as  one  risen  from  the  dead."  When  has  evil  ever 
been  so  completely  triumphant  over  good  as  when  it 
succeeded  in  getting  the  Prophet  of  Nazareth  nailed 
to  the  tree,  like  some  vile  and  noxious  animal  ?  That 
was  the  hour  of  success  for  the  malignant  Jewish 
hierarchy  and  for  the  spiritual  powers  of  darkness. 
But  it  was  an  hour  to  which  very  strict  limits  were 
placed.  Very  soon  He  Who  had  been  dismissed  to  the 
grave  by  a  cruel  and  sham.eful  death,  defeated  and  dis- 
graced, rose  again  from  it  triumphant,  not  only  over 
Jewish  priests  and  Roman  soldiers,  but  over  death  and 
the  cause  of  death ;  that  is,  over  every  kind  of  evil — 
pain,  and  ignorance,  and  sin.  It  was  for  that  very 
purpose  that  He  laid  down  His  life,  that  He  might  take 
it  again  :  and  it  was  for  that  reason  that  His  Father 
loved  Him,  because  He  had  received  the  commandment 
to  lay  it  down  and  take  it  again  from  His  Father 
(Johnx.  17,  1 8). 

But  "to  remember  Jesus  Christ  as  one  risen  from 
/  the  dead  "  does  more  than  this.  It  not  only  shows  us 
that  the  evil  against  which  we  have  such  a  weary 
struggle  in  this  life,  both  in  others  and  in  ourselves, 
is  not  (in  spite  of  depressing  appearances)  permanently 
triumphant ;   it  also  assures  us  that  there  is  another 


ii.8-io.]  POWER  OF  BELIEF  IN  THE  RESURRECTION.  357 

and  a  better  life  in  which  the  good  cause  will  be 
supreme,  and  supreme  without  the  possibility  of  dis- 
aster, of  even  of  contest.  We  talk  in  a  conventional 
way  of  death  as  the  country  "from  whose  bourne  no 
traveller  returns : "  but  we  are  wrong.  We  do  not 
mean  it  so;  yet  this  saying,  if  pressed,  would  carry 
with  it  a  denial  of  a  fact,  which  is  better  attested  than 
any  fact  in  ancient  history.  One  Traveller  has  re- 
turned ;  and  His  return  is  no  extraordinary  accident  or 
exceptional  and  solitary  success.  It  is  a  representative 
return  and  a  typical  success.  What  the  Son  of  Man 
has  done,  other  sons  of  men  can  do,  and  will  do.  The 
solidarity  between  the  human  race  and  the  Second 
Adam,  between  the  Church  and  its  Head,  is  such,  that 
the  victory  of  the  Leader  carries  with  it  the  victory  of 
the  whole  band.  The  breach  made  in  the  gates  of 
death  is  one  through  which  the  whole  army  of  Christ's 
followers  may  pass  out  into  eternal  life,  free  from 
death's  power  for  evermore.  This  thought  is  full  of 
comfort  and  encouragement  to  those  who  feel  them- 
selves almost  overwhelmed  by  the  perplexities,  and 
contradictions,  and  sorrows  of  this  life.  However 
grievous  this  life  may  be,  it  has  this  merciful  condition 
attached  to  it,  that  it  lasts  only  for  a  short  time ;  and 
then  the  risen  Christ  leads  us  into  a  life  which  is  free 
from  all  trouble,  and  which  knows  no  end.  The 
miseries  of  this  life  are  lessened  by  the  knowledge  that 
they  cannot  last  long.  The  blessedness  of  the  life  to 
come  is  perfected  by  the  fact  that  it  is  eternal,  . 

Once  more,  to  *'  remember  Jesus  Christ  as  one  risen  ^ 
from  the  dead,"  is  to  remember  One  Who  claimed  to  be 
the  promised  Saviour  of  the  world,  and  Who  proved  His 
claim.     By  its  countless  needs,  by  many  centuries   of 
yearning,  by  its  consciousness  of  failure  and  of  guilt, 


358  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

the  whole  human  race  had  been  led  to  look  forward  to 
the  coming  of  some  great  Deliverer,  Who  would  rescue 
mankind  from  its  hopeless  descent  down  the  path  of 
sin  and  retribution,  as  a  possibility.  By  the  express 
promise  of  Almighty  God,  made  to  the  first  generation 
of  mankind,  and  renewed  again  and  again  to  patriarchs 
and  prophets,  the  chosen  people  had  been  taught  to 
look  forward  to  the  coming  of  a  Saviour  as  a  certainty. 
And  Jesus  of  Nazareth  had  claimed  to  be  this  longed 
for  and  expected  Deliverer,  the  Desire  of  all  nations 
and  the  Saviour  of  the  world.  "  I  that  speak  unto  thee 
am  He "  (John  iv.  26).  By  His  mighty  works,  and 
stiil  more  by  His  life-giving  words.  He  had  shown  that 
He  had  Divine  credentials  in  support  of  His  claim  : 
but  not  until  He  rose  again  from  the  dead  was  His 
claim  absolutely  proved.  It  was  the  proof  which  He 
Himself  volunteered.  "  Destroy  this  temple  and  in 
three  days  I  will  raise  it  up"  (John  ii.  19).  "There 
shall  no  sign  be  given  but  the  sign  of  Jonah  the 
prophet  :  for  as  Jonah  was  three  days  and  three  nights 
in  the  bell}^  of  the  whale,  so  shall  the  Son  of  man  be 
three  days  and  three  nights  in  the  heart  of  the  earth  " 
(Matt.  xii.  39,  40),  and  then  return  again  to  the  light 
of  day  as  Jonah  did.  He  had  raised  others  from  the 
dead ;  but  so  had  Elijah  and  Elisha  done.  That  proved 
no  more  than  that  He  was  a  prophet  as  mighty  as 
they.  But  no  one  before  Jesus  had  ever  raised  Him- 
self If  His  Messiahship  was  doubtful  before,  all  doubt 
vanished  on  Easter  morning. 

And  this  leads  St.  Paul  on  to  the  second  point  which 
his  downcast  disciple  is  to  remember  in  connexion 
with  Jesus  Christ.  He  is  to  remember  Him  as  '^  of 
the  seed  of  David."  He  is  not  only  truly  God,  but 
truly  man.     He  was  risen  from   the  dead,  and  yet  He 


ii.8-io.]  POWER  OF  BELIEF  IN  THE  RESURRECTION.  359 


was  born  of  flesh  and  blood,  and  born  of  that  royal 
line  of  which  Timothy,  who  "  from  a  babe  had  known 
the  sacred  writings/'  had  many  times  heard  and  read. 
The  Resurrection  and  the  Incarnation  ; — those  are  the 
two  facts  on  which  a  faltering. minister  of  the  Gospel 
is  to  hold  fast,  in  order  to  comfort  his  heart  and 
strengthen  his  steps. 

It  is  worth  noting  that  St.  Paul  places  the  Resurrec- 
tion before  the  Incarnation,  a  fact  which  is  quite  lost 
in  the  transposed  order  of  the  A.V.  St.  Paul's  order, 
which  at  first  sight  seems  to  be  illogical,  was  the  usual 
order  of  the  Apostles'  preaching.  They  began,  not 
with  the  miraculous  birth  of  Christ,  but  with  His 
resurrection.  They  proved  by  abundant  testimony 
that  Jesus  had  risen  from  the  dead,  and  thence  argued 
that  He  must  have  been  more  than  man.  They  did 
not  preach  His  birth  of  a  virgin,  and  thence  argue  that 
He  was  Divine.  How  was  His  miraculous  birth  to  be 
proved,  to  those  who  were  unwilling  to  accept  His 
mother's  word  for  it  ?  But  thousands  of  people  had 
seen  Him  dead  upon  the  Cross,  and  hundreds  had  seen 
Him  alive  again  afterwards.  No  matter  of  fact  was 
more  securely  established  for  all  those  who  cared  to 
investigate  the  evidence.  With  the  Resurrection  proved, 
the  foundations  of  the  faith  were  laid.  The  Incarnation 
followed  easily  after  this,  especially  when  combined 
with  the  descent  from  David,  a  fact  which  helped  to 
prove  His  Messiahship.  Let  Timothy  boldly  and 
patiently  preach  these  great  truths  in  all  their  grand 
simplicity,  and  they  wull  bring  comfort  and  strength 
to  him  in  his  distress  and  difficulty,  as  they  have  done 
to  the  Apostle. 

This  is  the  meaning  of  "  according  to  my  gospel." 
These  are   the    truths  which  St.    Paul   has  habitually 


36o  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

preached,  and  of  the  value  of  which  he  can  speak  from 
full  experience.  He  knows  what  he  is  talking  about, 
when  he  affirms,  that  these  things  are  worth  remember- 
ing when  one  is  in  trouble.  The  Resurrection  and 
the  Incarnation  are  facts  on  which  he  has  ceaselessly 
insisted,  because  in  the  wear  and  tear  of  life  he  has 
found  out  their  worth. 

There  is  no  emphasis  on  the  "  my,"  as  the  Greek 
shows.  An  enclitic  cannot  be  emphatic.  The  Apostle 
is  not  contrasting  his  Gospel  with  that  of  other 
preachers,  as  if  he  would  say,  "  Others  may  teach 
what  they  please,  but  this  is  the  substance  of  my 
Gospel."  And  Jerome  is  certainly  mistaken,  if  what  is 
quoted  as  a  remark  of  his  is  rightly  assigned  to  him  by 
Fabricius,  to  the  effect  that  whenever  St.  Paul  says 
"  according  to  my  Gospel "  he  means  the  written 
Gospel  of  his  companion  St.  Luke,  who  had  caught 
much  of  his  spirit  and  something  of  his  language.  It 
would  be  much  nearer  the  truth  to  say  that  St.  Paul 
never  refers  to  a  written  Gospel.  In  every  one  of  the 
passages  in  which  the  phrase  occurs  the  context  is 
quite  against  any  such  interpretation  (Rom.  ii.  i6; 
xvi.  25;  cf  Tim.  i.  i.  ii).  In  this  place  the  words 
which  follow  are  conclusive  :  "  Wherein  I  suffer  hard- 
ship unto  bonds,  as  a  malefactor."  How  could  he  be 
said  to  suffer  hardship  unto  bonds  in  the  Gospel  of 
St.  Luke  ? 

A  word  of  protest  may  be  added  against  the  strange 
and  impossible  theory  that  the  third  Gospel  and  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles  were  written  by  St.  Paul  himself. 
If  there  is  one  thing  which  is  certain  with  regard  to 
the  authorship  of  the  Books  of  the  New  Testament, 
it  is  that  the  Acts  was  written  by  a  companion  of  St. 
Paul,      Even  destructive  critics  who  spare  little  else, 


ii.a-io.]  POWER  OF  BELIEF  IN  THE  RESURRECTION.  361 

admit  this  of  portions  of  the  Acts ;  and  the  Book  must 
be  accepted  or  rejected  as  a  whole.  Moreover,  it  is 
admitted  by  both  defenders  and  assailants  that  the 
writer  of  the  Acts  did  not  know  the  Epistle  to  the 
Galatians ;  and  it  is  highly  probable  that  when  he 
wrote  he  had  not  seen  the  Epistles  to  the  Romans  and 
to  the  Corinthians.*  How  then  can  he  have  been  St. 
Paul  ?  And  why  should  the  Apostle  write  sometimes 
in  the  third  person  of  what  Paul  said  and  did,  and 
sometimes  in  the  first  person  of  what  we  did  ?  All  this 
is  quite  natural,  if  the  writer  is  a  companion  of  the 
Apostle,  who  was  sometimes  with  him  and  sometimes 
not ;  it  is  most  extraordinary  if  the  Apostle  himself  is 
the  writer.  And  of  course  if  the  Acts  is  not  by  St. 
Paul,  the  third  Gospel  cannot  be ;  for  it  is  impossible 
to  assign  them  to  different  writers.  Moreover,  not  to 
mention  other  difficulties,  it  may  be  doubted  whether, 
more  than  two  years  (Acts  xxviii.  30)  before  the  death 
of  St.  Paul,  there  would  have  been  time  for  ''  many  "  to 
"  have  taken  in  hand  to  draw  up  a  narrative  concerning 
those  matters  which  have  been  fulfilled  among  us " 
(Luke  i.  i),  and  then  for  him  to  have  collected  material 
for  the  third  Gospel  and  to  have  written  it,  and  then, 
after  an  interval,  for  him  to  have  written  the  Acts. 
All  the  arguments  in  favour  of  the  Pauline  authorship 
of  the  third  Gospel  and  of  the  Acts  are  satisfied  by  the 
almost  universally  accepted  view,  that  these  two  works 

*  It  is  not  credible  that  a  writer  who  was  very  familiar  with  the 
incidents  and  persons  mentioned  and  alluded  to  in  Gal.  i.  17;  IL 
I — 5,  II— 14;  Rom.  XV.  19,  28;  xvi.  1—3,  23;  I  Cor.  i.  ii — 16;  v. 
i;  xi.  30;  xvi.  15  ;  2  Cor.  ii.  12;  vii.  5-;  xi.  24;  xii.  3,  7,  18,  should 
make  no  mention  of  them  or  reference  to  them.  The  silence  respect- 
ing Titus  would  be  most  extraordinary  if  the  Apostle  himself  were  the 
author  of  the  Acts.  See  Bishop  Lightfoot's  article  on  the  Acts  in  the 
new  edition  of  the  Diet,  of  the  Bible^ 


362  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

were  written  by  a  companion  of  the  Apostie,  who  was 
thoroughly  familiar  with  his  modes  of  thought  and 
expression. 

The  preaching  of  this  Gospel  of  the  Resurrection  and 
the  Incarnation  had  caused  the  Apostle  (as  he  here  tells 
us)  to  suffer  much  evil,  as  if  he  had  done  much  evil, 
even  to  the  extent  of  a  grievous  imprisonment.  He  is 
bound  as  a  malefactor  ;  but  his  Gospel  "  is  not  bound," 
because  it  is  "  the  word  of  God."  He  perhaps  changes 
the  expression  from  ''  my  Gospel "  to  "  the  word  of 
God"  in  order  to  indicate  why  it  is  that,  although 
the  preacher  is  in  prison,  yet  his  Gospel  is  free ; — 
because  the  word  which  he  preaches  is  not  his  own, 
but  God's. 

^'  The  word  of  God  is  not  bound."  The  Apostle  is 
imprisoned  ;  but  his  tongue  and  his  companion's  pen 
are  free.  He  can  still  teach  those  who  come  to  him ; 
can  still  dictate  letters  for  others  to  Luke  and  the  faithful 
few  who  visit  him.  He  can  still,  as  in  his  first  Roman 
imprisonment,  see  that  what  has  befallen  him  may 
*^have  fallen  out  rather  unto  the  progress  of  the 
gospel;  so  that  his  bonds  became  manifest  in  Christ 
throughout  the  whole  praetorian  guard,  and  to  all  the 
rest"  (Phil.  i.  I2,  13).  He  has  been  able  to  influence 
those  whom,  but  for  his  imprisonment,  he  would 
never  have  had  an  opportunity  of  reaching, — Roman 
soldiers,  and  warders,  and  officials,  and  all  who  have  to 
take  cognisance  of  his  trial  before  the  imperial  tribunal. 

^'  The  word  of  God  is  not  bound."  While  he  is  in 
prison,  Timothy,  and  Titus,  and  scores  of  other  evan- 
gelists and  preachers,  are  free.  Their  action  is  not 
hampered  because  a  colleague  is  shut  up.  The  loss  of 
him  might  have  a  depressing  and  discouraging  effect  on 
some ;  but  this  ought  not  to  be  so,  and  he  hopes  will 


ii.  S-io.]  POWER  OF  BELIEF  IN  THE  RESURRECTION,  363 

not  be  so.  Those  who  are  left  at  large  ought  to  labour 
all  the  more  energetically  and  enthusiastically,  in 
order  to  supply  whatever  is  lost  by  the  Apostle's  want 
of  freedom,  and  in  order  to  convince  the  world  that 
this  is  no  contest  with  a  human  organization  or  with 
human  opinion,  but  with  a  Divine  word  and  a  Divine 
Person. 

"The  word  of  God  is  not  bound,"  because  His 
word  is  the  truth,  and  it  is  the  truth  that  makes  men 
free.  How  can  that  of  which  the  very  essence  is 
freedom,  and  of  which  the  attribute  is  that  it  confers 
freedom,  be  itself  kept  in  bondage  ?  Truth  is  freer 
than  air  and  more  incompressible  than  water.  And 
just  as  men  must  have  air  and  must  have  water,  and 
you  cannot  keep  them  long  from  either ;  so  you  cannot 
long  keep  them  from  the  truth  or  the  truth  from  them. 
You  may  dilute  it,  or  obscure  it,  or  retard  it,  but  you 
cannot  bury  it  or  shut  it  up.  Laws  which  are  of 
Divine  origin  will  surely  and  irresistibly  assert  them- 
selves, and  truth  and  the  mind  of  man  will  meet 


CHAPTER    XXXII. 

THE  NEED  OF  A  SOLEMN  CHARGE  AGAINST  A  CON- 
TROVERSIAL SPIRIT,  OF  DILIGENCE  FREE  FROM 
SHAME,  AND  OF  A  HATRED  OF  THE  PROFANITY 
WHICH  WRAPS  UP  ERROR  IN  THE  LANGUAGE  OF 
TRUTH. 

"  Of  these  things  put  them  in  remenArance,  charging  them  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord,  that  they  strive  not  about  words,  to  no  profit,  to 
the  subverting  of  them  that  hear.  Give  diligence  to  present  thyself 
approved  unto  God,  a  v^orkman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed, 
handling  aright  the  word  of  truth.  But  shun  profane  babblings  :  for 
they  will  proceed  further  in  ungodliness,  and  their  word  will  eat  as 
doth  a  gangrene ;  of  whom  is  Hymenaeus  and  Philetus  ;  men  who 
concerning  the  truth  have  erred,  saying  that  the  resurrection  is 
passed  already,  and  overthrow  the  faith  of  some." — 2  Tim.  ii.  14 — 18. 

WE  here  enter  upon  a  new  section  of  the  Epistle, 
which  continues  down  to  the  end  of  the 
chapter.  It  consists  in  the  main  of  directions  as  to 
Timothy's  own  behaviour  in  the  responsible  post  in 
which  he  has  been  placed.  And  these  are  both  positive 
and  negative ;  he  is  told  what  to  aim  at,  and  what  to 
avoid. 

As  to  the  meaning  of  "  these  things,"  of  which  he 
is  to  put  his  flock  in  remembrance,  it  seems  most 
natural  to  refer  the  expression  to  the  "  faithful  saying" 
with  which  the  previous  section  closes.  He  is  to 
remind  others  (and  thereby  strengthen  his  own  courage 
and  faith),  that  to  die  for  Christ  is  to  live  with  Him, 


ii.  14-18.]  THE  SOLEMN-  CHARGE.  S^S 

and  to  suffer  for  Christ  is  to  reign  with  Him,  while 
to  deny  Him  is  to  involve  His  denying  us  ;  for,  how- 
ever faithless  we  may  be,  He  must  abide  by  what  He 
has  promised  both  of  rewards  and  punishments.  The 
fact  that  the  Apostle  uses  the  expression  "put  them 
in  remembrance,"  implying  that  they  already  know  it, 
is  some  confirmation  of  the  view  that  the  "  faithful 
saying "  is  a  formula  that  was  often  recited  in  the 
congregation ;  a  view  which  the  rhythmical  character 
of  the  passage  renders  somewhat  probable. 

Having  reminded  them  of  what  they  already  know 
well,  Timothy  is  to  "charge  them  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord,  that  they  strive  not  about  words."  This  phrase 
"  charge  them  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord "  is  worthy 
of  notice.  The  Apostle  twice  uses  it  in  addressing 
Timothy  himself.  "  I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God, 
and  Christ  Jesus,  and  the  elect  angels,  that  thou 
observe  these  things  without  prejudice  "(i  Tim.  v.  21); 
and  ''  I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  of  Christ 
Jesus,  Who  shall  judge  the  quick  and  dead,  and  by  His 
appearing  and  His  kingdom  ;  preach  the  word  "  (2  Tim. 
iv.  l).  The  word  for  "charge"  (Sta/jLaprvOeadaL) 
indicates  the  interposition  (8t,a)  of  two  parties,  and 
hence  comes  to  mean  to  "  call  heaven  and  earth  to 
witness  ; "  in  other  words,  to  "  testify  solemnly "  or 
"adjure;"  and  from  this  latter  meaning  it  easily 
becomes  employed  for  a  solemn  charge  or  exhortation. 
In  translating,  it  would  be  quite  legitimate  to  insert  an 
abverb  to  express  this  :  "  solemnly  charging  them  in 
the  sight  of  God."  In  dealing  with  these  pestilent 
disputes  and  perilous  opinions  Timoth}^,  both  for  his 
own  sake  and  for  that  of  his  hearers,  is  to  remember, 
and  to  remind  them,  in  Whose  presence  he  is  speaking. 
God's  eye  is  upon   both  preacher  and  congregation; 


366  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

and  in  pleading  the  cause  of  truth  and  sobriety  the 
preacher  is  in  fact  pleading  before  the  Divine  tribunal. 
This  will  make  the  teacher  wary  in  his  words,  and 
will  lead  his  hearers  to  listen  to  them  in  a  spirit  of 
sobriety. 

It  has  been  debated  whether  St.  Paul  has  in  his 
mind  those  "  faithful  men "  to  whom  Timothy  is  to 
commit  the  substance  of  the  Apostle's  teaching  (ver.  2), 
or  whether  he  is  not  now  taking  a  wider  view  and 
including  the  whole  of  the  disciple's  flock.  It  is 
impossible  to  determine  this  with  certainty ;  and  it 
is  not  a  question  of  much  moment.  One  thing  is  clear  ; 
viz.,  that  the  whole  section  is  applicable  to  ministers 
throughout  the  Church  in  all  ages ;  and  the  words 
under  consideration  seem  to  be  well  worthy  of  attention 
at  the  present  time,  when  so  many  unworthy  topics 
and  so  much  unworthy  language  may  be  heard  from 
the  pulpit.  One  is  inclined  to  think  that  if  ministers 
always  remembered  that  they  were  speaking  "  in  the 
sight  of  God,"  they  would  sometimes  find  other  things 
to  say,  and  other  ways  of  saying  them.  We  talk 
glibly  enough  of  another  man's  words  and  opinions, 
when  he  is  not  present.  We  may  be  entirely  free 
from  the  smallest  wish  to  misrepresent  or  exaggerate ; 
but  at  the  same  time  we  speak  with  great  freedom  and 
almost  without  restraint.  What  a  change  comes  over 
us,  if,  in  the  midst  of  our  glib  recital  of  his  views  and 
sayings,  the  man  himself  enters  the  room  !  At  once 
we  begin  to  measure  our  words  and  to  speak  with 
more  caution.  Our  tone  becomes  less  positive,  and 
we  have  less  confidence  that  we  are  justified  in  making 
sweeping  statements  on  the  subject.  Ought  not  some- 
thing of  this  circumspection  and  diffidence  to  be  felt 
by  those  who  take  the  responsibility  of  telling  others 


ii.  I4-I8.]    AGAINST  A    CONTROVERSIAL   SPIRIT.  367 

about  the  mind  of  God  ?  And  if  they  remembered 
constantly  that  they  speak  "in  the  sight  of  the  Lord/' 
this  attitude  of  solemn  circumspection  would  become 
habitual. 

"  That  they  strive  not  about  words."  The  spirit  of 
controversy  is  a  bad  thing  in  itself;  but  the  evil  is 
intensified  when  the  subject  of  controversy  is  a  question 
of  words.  Controversy  is  necessary ;  but  it  is  a  neces- 
sary evil :  and  that  man  has  need  of  searchings  of  heart 
who  finds  that  he  enjoys  it,  and  sometimes  even 
provokes  it,  when  it  might  easily  have  been  avoided. 
But  a  fondness  for  strife  about  words  is  one  of  the 
lowest  forms  which  the  malady  can  take.  Principles 
are  things  worth  striving  about,  when  opposition  to 
what  we  know  to  be  right  and  true  is  unavoidable. 
But  disputatiousness  about  words  is  something  like 
proof  that  love  of  self  has  taken  the  place  of  love  of 
truth.  The  word-splitter  wrangles,  not  for  the  sake  of 
arriving  at  the  truth,  but  for  the  sake  of  a  dialectical 
victory.  He  cares  little  as  to  what  is  right  or  wrong, 
so  long  as  he  comes  off  triumphant  in  the  argument. 
Hence  the  Apostle  said  in  the  first  Epistle,  that  the 
natural  fruit  of  these  disputes  about  words  is  *'envy, 
strife,  and  railings  "  (vi.  4).  They  are  an  exhibition  of 
dexterity  in  which  the  object  of  the  disputants  is  not 
to  investigate,  but  to  baffle,  not  to  enlighten,  but  to 
perplex.  And  here  he  says  that  they  are  worse  than 
worthless.  They  tend  "  to  no  profit :  "  on  the  contrary 
they  tend  ^'  to  the  subverting  of  those  who  Usten  to 
them."  This  subversion  or  overthrow  (Karaarpocjii])  is 
the  exact  opposite  of  what  ought  to  be  the  result  of 
Christian  discussion,  viz.,  edification  or  building  up 
(oLKoSofM^).  The  audience,  instead  of  being  built  up  in 
faith   and   principle,    find   themselves   bewildered   and 


3^8  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

lowered.  They  have  a  less  firm  grasp  of  truth  and  a 
less  loyal  affection  for  it.  It  is  as  if  some  beautiful 
object,  which  they  were  learning  to  understand  and 
admire,  had  been  scored  all  over  with  marks  by  those 
who  had  been  disputing  as  to  the  meaning  and  relation 
of  the  details.  It  has  been  a  favourite  device  of  the 
heretics  and  sceptics  of  all  ages  to  endeavour  to  provoke 
a  discussion  on  points  about  which  they  hope  to  place 
an  opponent  in  a  difficulty.  Their  object  is  not  to 
settle,  but  to  unsettle;  not  to  clear  up  doubts  but  to 
create  them  :  and  hence  we  find  Bishop  Butler  in  his 
Durham  Charge  recommending  his  clergy  to  avoid 
religious  discussions  in  general  conversation,  because 
the  clever  propounder  of  difficulties  will  find  ready 
hearers,  while  the  patient  answerer  of  them  will  not  do 
so.  To  dispute  is  to  place  truth  at  an  unnecessary 
disadvantage. 

*'  Give  diligence  to  present  thyself  approved  unto 
God,  a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed."  In 
the  previous  section  St.  Paul  exhorted  Timothy  to  be 
ready  to  suffer  for  Christ :  here  he  charges  him  to 
work  for  Him  ;  and  in  the  language  which  he  uses  he 
indicates  that  such  work  is  a  serious  matter; — ''Give 
diligence."  The  word  which  he  uses  (GirovhoXeiv)  is 
one  which  scarcely  occurs  in  the  New  Testament  except 
in  the  writings  of  St.  Paul.  And  the  corresponding 
substantive  {airovhr))  is  also  much  more  common  in 
his  Epistles  than  it  is  elsewhere.  It  indicates  that 
ceaseless,  serious,  earnest  zeal,  which  was  one  of  his 
chief  characteristics.  And  certainly  if  the  proposed 
standard  is  to  be  reached,  or  even  seriously  aimed  at 
abundance  of  this  zeal  will  be  required.  For  the  end 
proposed  is  not  the  admiration  or  affection  of  the 
congregation,  or  of  one's  superiors,  nor  yet  success  in 


ii.I4-i8.i        DILIGENCE  FREE  FROM  SHAME,  369 

influencing  and  winning  souls;  but  that  of  presenting 
oneself  to  God  in  such  a  way  as  to  secure  His  approval, 
without  fear  of  incurring  the  reproach  of  being  a 
workman  who  has  shirked  or  scamped  his  work.  The 
Apostle's  charge  is  a  most  wholesome  one :  and  if  it  is 
acted  upon,  it  secures  diligence  without  fussiness,  and 
enthusiasm  without  fanaticism.  The  being  ^^  approved" 
(S6ki/jlo<;)  implies  being  tried  and  proved  as  precious 
metals  are  proved  before  they  are  accepted  {Ze-)(o^aC)  as 
genuine.  It  is  the  word  used  of  the  ^^ pure  gold  "  with 
which  Solomon  overlaid  his  ivory  throne  (2  Chron.  ix. 
17).  In  .the  New  Testament  it  is  always  used  of 
persons,  and  with  one  exception  (James  i.  12)  it  is  used 
by  no  one  but  St.  Paul.  He  uses  it  of  being  approved 
both  of  men  (Rom.  xiv.  18)  and  of  God  (2  Cor.  x.  18). 
The  single  word  which  represents  ^^  that  needeth 
not  to  be  ashamed  "  (aveirala-^vvTo^i)  is  a  rare  forma- 
tion, which  occurs  nowhere  else  in  the  New  Testament. 
Its  precise  meaning  is  not  quite  certain.  The  more 
simple  and  frequent  form  (avaia')(yvTO^)  means  *'shame- 
less,"  i.e.y  one  who  does  not  feel  shame  when  he  ought 
to  do  so.  Such  a  meaning,  if  taken  literally,  would  be 
utterly  unsuitable  here.  And  we  then  have  choice 
of  two  interpretations,  either  (i)  that  which  is  adopted 
in  both  A.  V.  and  R.  V.,  who  need  not  feel  shame,  be- 
cause his  work  will  bear  examination,  or  (2)  who  does 
not  feel  shame,  although  his  work  is  of  a  kind  which 
the  world  holds  in  contempt.  The  latter  is  the  interpre- 
tation which  Chrysostom  adopts,  and  there  is  much  to 
be  said  in  its  favour.  Three  times  already  in  this  letter 
has  the  Apostle  spoken  of  not  being  ashamed  of  the 
Gospel.  He  says  "  Be  not  ashamed  of  the  testimony 
of  our  Lord,  nor  of  me  His  prisoner."  Again,  "  I  suffer 
these  things ;  yet  I  am  not  ashamed."     And  again  of 

24 


376  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY, 

Onesiphorus,  ''  He  oft  refreshed  me,  and  was  not 
ashamed  of  my  chain"  (i.  8,  12,  i6).  Does  he  not, 
therefore,  mean  here  also,  "  Present  thyself  to  God  as 
a  workman  who  is  not  ashamed  of  being  in  His  service 
and  of  doing  whatever  work  may  be  assigned  to  him  "  ? 
This  brings  us  very  close  to  what  would  be  the  natural 
meaning  of  the  word,  according  to  the  analogy  of  the 
simpler  form.  '*If  you  are  to  work  for  God,"  says 
Paul,  '*you  must  be  in  a  certain  sense  shameless. 
There  are  some  men  who  set  public  opinion  at  defiance, 
in  order  that  they  may  follow  their  own  depraved 
desires.  The  Christian  minister  must  be  prepared 
sometimes  to  set  public  opinion  at  defiance,  in  order 
that  he  may  follow  the  commands  of  God."  The  vox 
populi,  even  when  taken  in  its  most  comprehensive 
sense,  is  anything  but  an  infaUible  guide.  Public 
opinion  is  nearly  always  against  the  worst  forms  of 
selfishness,  dishonesty,  and  sensuaHty;  and  to  set  it 
at  defiance  in  •  such  matters  is  to  be  "  shameless  "  in 
the  worst  sense.  But  sometimes  public  opinion  is  very 
decidedly  against  some  of  the  noblest  types  of  holiness ; 
and  to  be  "  shameless  "  under  such  circumstances  is  a 
necessary  qualification  for  doing  one's  duty.  It  is  by 
no  means  certain  that  this  is  not  St.  Paul's  meaning. 
If  we  translate,  "  A  workman  that  feeleth  no  shame," 
we  shall  have  a  phrase  that  would  cover  either  inter- 
pretation. 

"  Handling  aright  the  word  of  truth,"  or  "  Rightly 
dividing  the  word  of  truth."  There  is  some  doubt 
here  also  as  to  the  explanation  of  the  word  rendered 
"handling  aright"  or  "rightly  dividing"  {opdorofi€iv). 
Once  more  we  have  a  word  which  occurs  nowhere 
else  in  New  Testament.  Its  radical  meaning  is  to 
*' cut  aright"  or  "cut  straight,"  especially  of  driving  a 


ii.  14-18.]        HANDLING   THE    WORD  ARIGHT.  371 

Straight  road  through  a  district,  or  a  straight  furrow 
across  a  field.  In  the  LXX.  it  is  twice  used  of  making 
straight  or  directing  a  person's  path.  "  In  all  thy 
ways  acknowledge  Him,  and  He  shall  direct  thy 
patlis  ; "  and  '*  The  righteousness  of  the  perfect  shall 
direct  his  way "  (Prov.  iii.  6 ;  xi.  5).  The  idea  of 
rightness  seems  to  be  the  dominant  one ;  that  of  cut- 
ting quite  secondary;  so  that  the  Revisers  are  quite 
justified  in  following  the  example  of  the  Vulgate  (rede 
tradanteni),  and  translating  simply  "  rightly  handling." 
But  this  right  handling  may  be  understood  as  consist- 
ing in  seeing  that  the  word  of  truth  moves  in  the  right 
direction  and  progresses  in  the  congregation  by  a 
legitimate  development.  The  word,  therefore,  ex- 
cludes all  fanciful  and  perilous  deviations  and  evasions, 
such  as  those  in  which  the  false  teachers  indulged,  and 
all  those  "  strivings  about  words,"  which  distract  men's 
minds  and  divert  them  from  the  substance  of  the 
Gospel.  It  may  be  doubted  whether  the  word  contains 
an}^  idea  of  distribution,  as  that  the  word  of  truth  is  to 
be  preached  according  to  the  capacity  of  the  hearers, — 
strong  meat  to  the  strong,  and  milk  to  those  who  are 
still  but  babes  in  the  faith.  We  may  feel  sure  that  the 
expression  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  cutting  up  of 
victims  in  sacrifices,  or  with  cutting  straight  to  the 
heart  of  a  thing,  as  if  the  word  of  truth  had  a  kernel 
which  must  be  reached  by  cleaving  it  down  the  middle. 
Yet  both  these  explanations  have  been  suggested. 
Clement  of  Alexandria  and  Eusebius  use  the  substan- 
tive derived  from  St.  Paul's  verb  {opdoro^ila)  in  the 
sense  of  orthodoxy;  which  seems  to  imply  that  they 
understood  the  verb  in  the  sense  of  handling  aright 
{Strom.,  VII.  xvi. ;  H.  E.,  IV.  iii.). 

Once  more  (i  Tim.  vi.  20)  the  Apostle  warns  his 


Z12  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY. 


disciple  against  "  profane  babblings."  He  is  (according 
to  St.  Paul's  graphic  word)  to  make  a  circuit  in  order 
to  avoid  such  things,  to  "  give  them  a  wide  berth " 
{Trepitcnaao ;  comp.  Tit.  iii.  9).  These  empty  pro- 
fanities, with  their  philosophic  pretentiousness,  had 
done  much  harm  already,  and  would  do  still  more ;  for 
the  men  who  propagate  them  would  certainly  go  still 
greater  lengths  in  impiety ;  and  they  must  receive  no 
encouragement.  Their  teaching  is  of  a  kind  that  will 
spread  rapidly,  and  it  is  deadly  in  its  effects.  It  *'  will 
eat  as  doth  a  gangrene." 

The  substitution  of  "  gangrene  "  for  ^*  cancer  "  is  an 
improvement,  as  giving  the  exact  word  used  in  the 
original,  which  expresses  the  meaning  more  forcibly 
than  "  cancer."  Cancer  is  sometimes  very  slow  in  its 
ravages,  and  may  go  on  for  years  without  causing 
serious  harm.  Gangrene  poisons  the  whole  frame  and 
quickly  becomes  fatal.  The  Apostle  foresees  that 
doctrines,  which  really  ate  out  the  very  heart  of 
Christianity,  were  likely  to  become  very  popular  in 
Ephesus  and  would  do  incalculable  mischief.  The 
nature  of  these  doctrines  we  gather  from  what  follows. 
They  are  preached  by  the  kind  of  people  (omz^e?)  who 
miss  their  aim  as  regards  the  truth.  They  profess  to 
be  aiming  at  the  truth,  but  they  go  very  wide  of  the 
mark.  For  instance,  some  of  them  say  that  it  is  quite 
a  mistake  to  louk  forward  to  a  resurrection  of  the  body, 
or  indeed  to  any  resurrection  at  all.  The  only  real 
resurrection  has  taken  place  already  and  cannot  be 
repeated.  It  is  that  intellectual  and  spiritual  process 
which  is  involved  in  rising  from  degrading  ignorance  to 
a  recognition  and  acceptance  of  the  truth.  What  is 
commonly  called  death,  viz.,  the  separation  of  soul  and 
body,   is  not  really  death  at  all.     Death  in  the  true 


ii.  14-18.]  THE   GANGRENE  OF  ERROR.  373 

sense  of  the  word  means  ignorance  of  God  and  o' 
Divine  things ;  to  be  buried  is  to  be  buried  in  error 
Consequently  the  true  resurrection  is  to  be  reanimated 
by  the  truth  and  to  escape  from  the  sepulchre  of 
spiritual  darkness ;  and  this  process  is  accomplished 
once  for  all  in  every  enlightened  soul.  We  learn  from 
the  v/ritings  of  Irenaeus  (Hcer.,  II.  xxxi.  2)  and  of 
TertuUian  {De  Res.  Cam.,  xix.)  that  this  form  of  error 
was  in  existence  in  their  day  :  and  Augustine  in  a  letter 
to  Januarius  (Iv.  iii.  4)  shows  how  such  false  notions 
might  have  grown  out  of  St.  Paul's  own  teaching.  The 
Apostle  insisted  so  frequently  upon  the  fact  of  our 
being  dead  with  Christ  and  raised  together  with  Him, 
that  some  persons  jumped  to  the  conclusion  that  this 
was  the  whole  of  the  Christian  doctrine  of  the  resur- 
rection. The  resurrection  of  the  body  was  a  great 
stumbling-block  to  Greeks  and  Orientals,  with  their  low 
notions  of  the  dignity  of  the  human  body  ;  and  there- 
fore any  interpretation  of  the  resurrection  which  got 
rid  of  the  difficulty  of  supposing  that  in  the  world  to 
come  also  men  would  have  bodies,  was  welcome.  It 
was  calamity  enough  to  be  burdened  with  a  body  in 
this  life  :  it  was  appalling  to  think  of  such  a  condition 
being  continued  in  eternity.  Hence  the  obnoxious 
doctrine  was  explained  away  and  resolved  into  allegory 
and  metaphor. 

Of  Hymenaeus  and  Philetus  nothing  further  is 
known.  Hymenaeus  is  probably  the  same  person  as  is 
mentioned  in  the  first  Epistle  with  Alexander,  as 
having  made  shipwreck  of  the  faith,  and  been  delivered 
unto  Satan  by  the  Apostle,  to  cure  him  of  his  blas- 
phemies. We  are  told  here  that  much  mischief  had 
been  done  by  such  teaching  :  for  a  number  of  persons 
had    been   seduced   from  the   faith,     "Some,"  in  the 


374  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY, 

English  phrase  " overthrow  the  faith  of  scme^^  conveys 
an  impression,  which  is  not  contained  in  the  Greek 
(tivcop),  that  the  number  of  those  who  were  led  astray 
was  small.  The  Greek  indicates  neither  a  large  nor  a 
small  number ;  but  what  is  told  us  leads  to  the  con- 
clusion that  the  number  was  not  small.  It  is  probably 
to  this  kind  of  teaching  that  St.  John  alludes,  when  he 
writes  some  twenty  or  more  years  later  than  this,  and 
says,  "  Even  now  there  have  arisen  maizy  antichrists  " 
(i  John  ii.  1 8).  Teaching  of  this  kind  was  only  too 
likely  to  be  popular  in  Ephesus. 

It  is  by  no  means  unknown  among  ourselves.  At 
the  present  time  also  there  is  a  tendency  to  retain  the 
old  Christian  terms  and  to  deprive  them  of  all  Christian 
meaning.  Not  only  such  words  as  "  miracle,"  "  Church," 
*' catholic,"  and  "sacrament"  are  evaporated  and  ethe- 
realized,  until  they  lose  all  definite  meaning ;  but  even 
such  fundamental  terms  as  "  atonement,"  "redemption," 
and  "immortahty."  Nay  it  is  quite  possible  to  find 
even  the  word  "  God  "  used  to  express  a  Being  which 
is  neither  personal  nor  conscious.  And  thus  language, 
which  has  been  consecrated  to  the  service  of  religion 
for  a  long  series  of  centuries,  is  degraded  to  the 
unworthy  purpose  of  insinuating  pantheism  and 
agnosticism.  This  perversion  of  well  established 
phraseology  is  to  be  condemned  on  purely  literary 
grounds :  and  on  moral  grounds  it  may  be  stigmatized 
as  dishonest.  If  Hymenaeus  and  Philetus  wish  to 
deny  the  resurrection,  let  them  also  surrender  the 
word  which  expresses  it.  They  have  abundance  of 
words  wherewith  to  express  mental  and  moral  enlighten- 
ment. Let  them  not  so  handle  a  word  of  truth  as  to 
make  it  suggest  a  lie. 


CHAPTER   XXXIII. 

THE  LAST  DAYS.— THE  BEARING  OF  THE  MENTION 
OF  JANNES  AND  JAMB  RES  ON  THE  QUESTION  OF 
INSPIRATION  AND  THE  ERRORS  CURRENT  IN 
E  RHESUS. 

"But  know  this,  that  in  the  last  days  grievous  times  shall  come. 
For  men  shall  be  lovers  of  self,  lovers  of  money,  boastful,  haughty, 
railers,  disobedient  to  parents,  unthankful,  unholy.  .  .  .  And  like 
as  Jannes  and  Jambres  withstood  Moses,  so  do  these  also  with- 
stand the  truth ;  men  corrupted  in  mind,  reprobate  concerning  the 
faith."— 2  Tim.  iii.  I,  2,  8. 

IN  the  first  chapter  the  Apostle  looks  back  over 
the  past ;  in  the  second  he  gives  directions  about 
the  present ;  in  the  third  he  looks  forward  into  the 
future.  These  divisions  are  not  observed  with  rigidity 
throughout,  but  they  hold  good  to  a  very  considerable 
extent.  Thus  in  the  first  division  he  remembers 
Timothy's  affectionate  grief  at  parting,  his  faith  and 
that  of  his  family,  and  the  spiritual  gift  conferred 
on  him  at  his  ordination.  And  respecting  himself 
he  remembers  his  teaching  Timothy,  his  being  deserted 
by  those  in  Asia,  his  being  ministered  to  by  Onesiphorus. 
In  the  second  chapter  he  charges  Timothy  to  be  willing 
to  suffer  hardships  with  him,  and  instructs  him  how 
to  conduct  himself  in  the  manifold  difficulties  of  his 
present  position.  And  now  he  goes  on  to  forewarn 
and  forearm  him  against  dangers  and  troubles  which 
he  foresees  in  the  future. 


376  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

There  are  several  prophecies  in  the  New  Testament 
similar  to  the  one  before  us.  There  is  that  of  St.  Paul 
to  the  Ephesian  Church  some  ten  years  before,  just 
before  his  final  departure  for  the  bonds  and  afflictions 
which  awaited  him  at  Jerusalem.  "  I  know  that  after 
my  departing  grievous  wolves  shall  enter  in  among 
you,  not  sparing  the  flock  ;  and  from  your  own  selves 
shall  men  arise,  speaking  perverse  things,  to  draw 
away  disciples  after  them"  (Acts  xx.  29,  30).  The 
Epistles  to  Timothy  show  that  this  prediction  was 
already  being  fulfilled  during  the  Apostle's  hfetime. 
There  is,  secondly,  the  prophecy  respecting  the  great 
falling  away  and  the  revealing  of  the  man  of  sin, 
which  is  somewhat  parallel  to  the  one  before  us 
(2  Thess.  ii.  3 — 7).  Thirdly,  there  is  the  similar  pre- 
diction in  the  First  Epistle  to  Timothy  (iv.  I — 3).  And 
besides  these  three  by  St.  Paul,  there  are  those  con- 
tained in  2  Peter  ii.  I,  2  about  the  rise  of  false 
teachers,  and  in  the  First  Epistle  of  St.  John 
(ii.  18  and  iv.  3)  about  the  coming  of  antichrist.  Those 
in  2  Thessalonians  and  2  Peter  should  be  compared 
with  the  one  before  us,  as  containing  a  mixture  of 
present  and  future.  This  mixture  has  been  made  the 
basis  of  a  somewhat  frivolous  objection.  It  has  been 
urged  that  the  shifting  from  future  to  present  and 
back  again  indicates  the  hand  of  a  writer  who  is 
contemporary  with  the  events  which  he  pretends  to 
foretell.  Sometimes  he  adopts  the  form  of  prophecy 
and  uses  the  future  tense.  But  at  other  times  the 
influence  of  facts  is  too  strong  for  him.  He  forgets 
his  assumed  part  as  a  prophet,  and  writes  in  the 
present  tense  of  his  own  experiences.  Such  an 
objection  credits  the  feigned  prophet  with  a  very  small 
amount  of  intelligence.     Are  we  seriously  to  suppose 


iii.  I,  2, 8.]  THE  LAST  DA  YS.  377 

that  any  one  would  be  so  stupid  as  to  be  unable  to 
sustain  his  part  for  half  a  dozen  verses,  or  less,  with- 
out betraying  himself?  But,  in  fact,  the  change  of 
tense  indicates  nothing  of  the  kind.  It  is  to  be  ex- 
plained in  some  cases  by  the  fact  that  the  germs  of  the 
evils  predicted  were  already  in  existence,  in  others 
by  the  practice  (especially  common  in  prophecy)  of 
speaking  of  what  is  certain  to  happen  as  if  it  were 
already  a  fact.  The  prophet  is  often  a  seer^  who  sees 
as  present  what  is  distant  or  future  ;  and  hence  he 
naturally  uses  the  present  tense,  even  when  he  predicts. 
The  meaning  of  the  "last  days"  is  uncertain.  The 
two  most  important  interpretations  are:  (i)  \h^  whole 
time  between  Christ's  first  and  second  coming,  and  (2) 
the  portion  immediately  before  Christ's  second  coming. 
Probability  is  greatly  in  favour  of  the  latter;  for  the 
other  makes  the  expression  rather  meaningless.  If 
these  evils  were  to  come  at  all,  they  must  come  between 
the  two  Advents ;  for  there  is  no  other  time :  and  in 
that  case  why  speak  of  this  period  as  the  ''  last  days  "  ? 
It  might  be  reasonable  to  call  them  ^'  these  last  days," 
but  not  "last  days"  without  such  specification.  At 
the  present  time  it  would  not  be  natural  to  speak  of  an 
event  as  likely  to  happen  in  the  last  days,  when  we 
meant  that  it  would  happen  between  our  own  time  and 
the  end  of  the  world.  The  expression  used  in  i  Tim. 
iv.  I  very  probably  does  mean  no  more  than  ''in  future 
times  ;  hereafter  "  (iv  vaTepoL<;  Kaipoh).  But  here  and 
in  2  Pet.  iii.  3  the  meaning  rather  is  "  in  the  last  days ; 
when  the  Lord  is  at  hand."  It  is  then  that  the  enemy 
will  be  allowed  to  put  forth  all  his  power,  in  order  to  be 
more  completely  overthrown.  Then  indeed  there  will 
be  perilous,  critical,  grievous  times  (Kaipol  x'^^^ttol). 
The  Apostle  treats  it  as  possible^  or  even  probable, 


378  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

that  Timothy  will  live  to  see  the  troubles  which  will 
mark  the  eve  of  Christ's  return.  The  Apostles  shared, 
and  contributed  to  produce,  the  belief  that  the  Lord 
would  come  again  soon,  within  the  lifetime  of  some 
who  were  then  alive.  Even  at  the  close  of  a  long  life 
we  find  the  last  surviving  Apostle  pointing  out  to  the 
Church  that  "it  is  the  last  hour"  (i  John  iL  1 8), 
obviously  meaning  by  that  expression,  that  it  is  the 
time  immediately  preceding  the  return  of  Christ  to 
judge  the  world.  And  some  twenty  years  later  we  find 
Ignatius  writing  to  the  Ephesians  '*  These  are  the  last 
times  {^(TyaToi  Kaipoi).  Henceforth  let  us  be  reverent ; 
let  us  fear  the  longsuftering  of  God,  lest  it  turn  into 
a  judgment  against  us.  For  either  let  us  fear  the 
wrath  which  is  to  come,  or  let  us  love  the  grace  which 
now  is"  (Eph.  xi.).  Only  by  the  force  of  experience 
was  the  m^ind  of  the  Church  cleared  so  as  to  see  the 
Kingdom  of  Christ  in  its  true  perspective.  The  warn- 
ing which  Jesus  had  given,  that  "  of  that  day  or  that 
hour  knoweth  no  one,  not  even  the  angels  in  heaven, 
neither  the  Son,  but  the  Father,"  seems  to  have  been 
understood  as  meaning  no  more  than  the  declaration 
"  in  an  hour  that  ye  think  not  the  Son  of  man  cometh.' 
That  is,  it  was  understood  as  a  warning  against  being 
found  unprepared,  and  not  as  a  warning  against 
forming  conjectures  as  to  how  near  Christ's  return 
was.  Therefore  we  need  not  be  at  all  surprised  at  St. 
Paul  writing  to  Timothy  in  a  way  which  implies  that 
Timothy  will  probably  live  to  see  the  evils  which  will 
immediately  precede  Christ's  return,  and  must  be  on 
his  guard  against  being  amazed  or  overwhelmed  by 
them.  He  is  to  "  turn  away  from  "  the  intense  wicked- 
ness which  will  then  be  manifested,  and  go  on  undis- 
mayed with  his  own  work. 


iii.  1, 2, 8.]  JANNES  AJ^D  JAMB  RES.  379 

**  Like  as  Jannes  and  Jambres  withstood  Moses,  so 
do  these  also  withstand  the  truth."  The  Apostle  is 
obviously  referring  to  the  Egyptian  magicians  mentioned 
in  Exodus.  But  in  the  Pentateuch  neither  their  number 
nor  their  names  are  given  ;  so  that  we  must  suppose 
that  St.  Paul  is  referring  to  some  Jewish  tradition 
on  the  subject.  The  number  two  was  very  possibly 
suggested  by  the  number  of  their  opponents  : — Moses 
and  Aaron  on  one  side,  and  two  magicians  on  the  other. 
And  on  each  side  it  is  a  pair  of  brothers  ;  for  the 
Targum  of  Jonathan  represents  the  magicians  as  sons 
of  Balaam,  formerly  instructors  of  Moses,  but  after- 
wards his  enemies.  The  names  vary  in  Jewish 
tradition.  Jannes  is  sometimes  Johannes,  and  Jambres 
is  sometimes  either  Mambres  or  Ambrosius.  The 
tradition  respecting  them  was  apparently  widely 
spread.  It  was  known  to  Numenius,  a  Platonic 
philosopher  of  Apameia  in  Syria,  who  is  mentioned 
by  Clement  of  Alexandria  (Strom. j  I.  xxii.),  and  quoted 
byOrigen  and  Eusebius  as  giving  an  account  of  Jannes 
and  Jambres  {Con.  Cels.,  IV.  li.  ;  Prcep.  Evang.,  IX. 
viii.).  In  Africa  we  find  some  knowledge  of  the 
tradition  exhibited  by  Appuleius,  the  famous  author  of 
the  Golden  Ass,  who  like  Numenius  flourished  in  the 
second  century.  And  in  the  previous  century  another 
Latin  writer,  Pliny  the  Elder,  shows  a  similar  know- 
ledge. Both  of  them  mention  Jannes  as  a  magician 
in  connexion  with  Moses,  who  is  also  in  their  eyes 
a  magician ;  but  Pliny  appears  to  think  that  both 
Moses  and    Jannes    were   Jews.*       It   is    highly    im- 

*  Est  et  alia  Magices  factio  a  Moyse,  et  Janne,  et  Jotape  Judseis 
pendens  (Plin.  Htsf.  Nat,  XXX.  ii.). 

Si  quamlibet  emolumentum  probaveritis,  ego  ille  sim  Carinor.das, 
vel  Damigeron,  vel  is  Moses,  vel  Jannes  [al.  I.  Johannes],  vel  Apol- 


38o  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY, 

probable  that  any  of  these  writers  derived  their  know- 
ledge of  these  names  from  the  passage  before  us ;  in 
the  case  of  Pliny  this  would  scarcely  have  been  possible. 
His  Natural  History  was  published  about  a.d.  77,  and 
at  that  time  the  Second  Epistle  to  Timothy  must  have 
been  known  to  but  few,  even  among  Christians.  The 
author  of  the  apocryphal  Gospel  of  Nicodemus  very 
possibly  did  derive  his  knowledge  of  the  names  from 
St.  Paul ;  yet  he  may  have  had  independent  sources  of 
information.  He  represents  Niccdemus  as  pleading 
before  Pilate  that  Jannes  and  Jambres  worked  miracles 
before  Pharaoh;  "but  because  they  were  not  from 
God,  what  they  did  was  destroyed."  Whereas  ''Jesus 
raised  up  Lazarus,  and  he  is  alive  "  (chap.  v.). 

One  of  the  ablest  of  English  commentators  on  these 
Epistles  remarks  upon  this  passage,  ''It  is  probable 
that  the  Apostle  derived  these  names  from  a  current 
and  (being  quoted  by  him)  true  tradition  of  the  Jewish 
Church."  And  in  a  similar  spirit  a  writer  in  the 
Dictionary  of  the  Bible  thinks  that  it  would  be  "  incon- 
sistent with  the  character  of  an  inspired  record  for  a 
baseless  or  incorrect  current  tradition  to  be  cited." 

Let  us  look  at  the  phenomena  of  the  case  and  see 
whether  the  number  and  the  names  appear  to  be 
trustworthy  or  otherwise,  and  then  consider  the  ques- 
tion of  inspiration.  To  drag  in  the  latter  question  in 
order  to  determine  the  former,  is  to  begin  at  the  wrong 
end. 

That  there  should  be  a  pair  of  brothers  to  oppose 
a  pair  of  brothers,  has  been  pointed  out  already  as  a 
suspicious  circumstance.     The  jingling  pairing   of  the 

lonius,  vel  ipse  Dardanus,  vel  quicunque  post  Zoroastren  et  Hostanen 
inter  Magos  celebratus  est  (AppuL,  Apologia,  544»  P«  5^0  ed, 
Oudendorp). 


iii.  1, 2, 8.]  JANNES  AJStD  JAMB  RES.  381 

names  is  also  more  like  fiction  than  fact.  Thirdly,  the 
names  appear  to  be  in  formation,  not  Egyptian,  but 
Hebrew ;  which  would  naturally  be  the  case  if  Jews 
invented  them,  but  would  be  extraordinary  if  they 
were  genuine  names  of  Egyptians.  Lastly,  Jannes 
might  come  from  a  Hebrew  root  which  means  "  to 
seduce,"  and  Jambres  from  one  which  means  "to 
rebel."  If  Jews  were  to  invent  names  for  the  Egyptian 
magicians,  what  names  would  they  be  more  likely  to 
fasten  on  them  than  such  as  would  suggest  seductive 
error  and  rebellious  opposition  ?  And  is  it  probable 
that  a  really  trustworthy  tradition,  on  such  an  unim- 
portant fact  as  the  names  of  the  enchanters  who 
opposed  Moses,  would  have  survived  through  so 
many  centuries?  Sober  and  unbiassed  critics  will 
for  the  most  part  admit  that  the  probabilities  are  very 
decidedly  against  the  supposition  that  these  names  are 
true  names,  preserved  from  oblivion  by  some  written 
or  unwritten  tradition  outside  Scripture. 

But  is  it  consistent  with  the  character  of  an  in- 
spired writer  to  quote  an  incorrect  tradition?  Only 
those  who  hold  somewhat  narrow  and  rigid  theories 
of  inspiration  will  hesitate  to  answer  this  question  in 
the  affirmative.  No  one  believes  that  inspired  persons 
are  in  possession  of  all  knowledge  on  all  subjects.  And 
if  these  names  were  commonly  accepted  as  authentic 
by  the  Jews  of  St.  Paul's  day,  would  his  inspiration 
necessarily  keep  him  from  sharing  that  belief?  Even 
if  he  were  well  aware  that  the  tradition  respecting  the 
names  was  untrustworthy,  there  would  be  nothing 
surprising  in  his  speaking  of  the  magicians  under  their 
commonly  accepted  names,  when  addressing  one  to 
whom  the  tradition  would  be  well  known.  And  if  (as 
is  more  probable)  he  believed  the  names  to  be  genuine, 


382  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE    TO   TIMOTHY, 

there  is  still  less  to  surprise  us  in  his  making  use  of 
them  to  add  vivacity  to  the  comparison.  Nothing  in 
God's  dealings  with  mankind  warrants  us  in  believing 
that  He  would  grant  a  special  revelation  to  an  Apostle, 
in  order  to  preserve  him  from  so  harmless  a  proceeding 
as  illustrating  an  argument  by  citing  the  incorrect 
details  which  tradition  had  added  to  historical  facts. 
And  it  is  worth  noting  that  nothing  is  based  upon  the 
names  ;  they  occur  in  what  is  mere  illustration.  And 
even  in  the  illustration  it  is  not  the  names  that  have 
point,  but  the  persons,  who  are  supposed  to  have  borne 
them  ;  and  the  persons  are  real,  although  the  names 
are  probably  fictitious.  Still  less  are  we  warranted  in 
believing,  as  Chrysostom  suggests,  that  St.  Paul  by  in- 
spiration had  supernatural  knowledge  of  the  names. 
As  we  have  seen,  the  names  were  known  even  to 
Gentiles  who  cannot  well  have  derived  their  knowledge 
from  him ;  and  why  should  he  have  received  a  revela- 
tion about  a  trifle  which  in  no  way  helps  his  argument  ? 
Such  views  of  inspiration,  although  the  product  of  a 
reverential  spirit,  degrade  rather  than  exalt  our  concep- 
tions of  it.  The  main  point  of  the  comparison  between 
the  two  cases  appears  to  be  opposition  to  the  truth. 
But  there  is  perhaps  more  in  it  than  that.  The 
magicians  withstood  Moses  by  professing  to  do  the 
same  wonders  that  he  did  ;  and  the  heretics  withstood 
Timothy  by  professing  to  preach  the  same  gospel  as 
he  did.  This  was  frequently  the  line  taken  by  here- 
tical teachers ;  to  disclaim  all  intention  of  teaching 
anything  new,  and  to  profess  substantial,  if  not 
complete,  agreement  with  those  whom  they  opposed. 
They  affirmed  that  their  teaching  was  only  the  old 
truth  looked  at  from  another  point  of  view.  They  used 
the  same  phraseology  as  Apostles  had  used  ;  they  merely 


iii.  1, 2, 8.]  HERESY  AND  MAGIC.  3^3 

gave  it  a  more  comprehensive  (or,  as  would  now  be 
said,  a  more  catholic)  meaning.  In  this  way  the  unwary 
were  more  easily  seduced,  and  the  suspicions  of  the 
simple  were  less  easily  aroused.  But  such  persons 
betray  themselves  before  long.  Their  mind  is  found 
to  be  tainted;  and  when  they  are  put  to  the  proof 
respecting  the  faith,  they  cannot  stand  the  test 
{ahoKuxoi). 

There  is  nothing  improbable  in  the  supposition  that 
St.  Paul  mentions  the  magicians  who  withstood  Moses 
as  typical  opponents  of  the  truth,  because  the  false 
teachers  at  Ephesus  used  magic  arts  ;  and  the  word 
which  he  uses  for  impostors  (7077x69)  in  ver.  13  fits  in 
very  well  with  such  a  supposition,  although  it  by  no 
means  makes  it  certain.  Ephesus  was  famous  for  its 
charms  and  incantations  (^Ecj^eata  ypufifxaTo),  and 
around  the  statue  of  its  goddess  Artemis  were  unin- 
telligible inscriptions,  to  which  a  strange  efficacy  was 
ascribed.  The  first  body  of  Christians  in  Ephesus  had 
been  tainted  by  senseless  wickedness  of  this  kind. 
After  accepting  Christianity  they  had  secretly  retained 
their  magic.  The  sons  of  the  Jew  Sceva  had  tried  to 
use  the  sacred  name  of  Jesus  as  a  magical  form  of 
exorcism ;  and  this  brought  about  the  crisis  in  which 
numbers  of  costly  books  of  incantations  were  publicly 
burned  (Acts  xix.  13 — 20).  The  evil  would  be  pretty 
sure  to  break  out  again,  especially  among  new  converts ; 
just  as  it  does  among  negro  converts  at  the  present  day. 
Moreover  we  know  that  in  some  cases  there  was  a  very 
close  connexion  between  some  forms  of  heresy  and 
magic :  so  that  the  suggestion  that  St.  Paul  has  pre- 
tensions to  miraculous  power  in  his  mind,  when  he 
compares  the  false  teachers  to  the  Egyptian  magicians, 
is  by  no  means  improbable. 


384        The  second  epistle  to  timothy. 

The  connexion  between  heresy  and  superstition  is  a 
very  real  and  a  very  close  one.  The  rejection  or 
surrender  of  religious  truth  is  frequently  accompanied 
by  the  acceptance  of  irrational  beliefs.  People  deny 
miracles  and  believe  in  spiritualism ;  they  cavil  at  the 
efficacy  of  sacraments  and  accept  as  credible  the 
amazing  properties  of  an  *  astral  body.'  There  is  such 
a  thing  as  the  nemesis  of  unbelief.  The  arrogance 
which  rejects  as  repugnant  to  reason  and  morality 
truths  which  have  throughout  long  centuries  satisfied 
the  highest  intellects  and  the  noblest  hearts,  is  some- 
times punished  by  being  seduced  into  delusions  which 
satisfy  nothing  higher  than  a  grovelling  curiosity. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

THE  PERILS  OF  RATIONALISM  AND  THE  RESPONSI- 
BILITIES OF  A  LIFELONG  CONTACT  WITH  TRUTH. 
—  THE  PROPERTIES  OF  INSPIRED   WRITINGS. 

"  But  abide  thou  in  the  things  which  thou  hast  learned  and  hast 
been  assured  of,  knowing  of  whom  thou  hast  learned  them  ;  and  that 
from  a  babe  thou  hast  known  the  sacred  writings,  which  are  able  to 
make  thee  wise  unto  salvation  through  faith  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus. 
Every  scripture  inspired  of  God  is  also  profitable  for  teaching,  for 
reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruction  which  is  in  righteousness  : 
that  the  man  of  God  may  be  complete,  furnished  completely  unto 
every  good  work." — 2  Tim.  iii.  I4-I7' 

FOR  the  second  time  in  this  paragraph  the  Apostle 
puts  his  faithful  disciple  in  marked  contrast  to  the 
heretical  teachers.  A  few  lines  before,  after  comparing 
the  latter  to  the  Egyptian  magicians,  he  continues, 
"  But  thou  (a-if  Si)  didst  follow  my  teaching."  And  in 
the  passage  before  us,  after  saying  that  "evil  men  and 
impostors  shall  wax  worse  and  worse/*  he  continues, 
"  But  abide  thou  (av  8e  fieve)  in  the  things  which  thou 
hast  learned."  Here  there  is  a  double  contrast ;  first 
between  Timothy  and  the  impostors,  and  secondly 
between  his  abiding  in  the  truth  and  their  going  away 
from  it,  and  so  from  bad  to  worse,  first  as  deceivers 
and  then  as  being  deceived.  Tkey  begin  by  being 
seducers  and  end  in  being  dupes,  and  the  dupes  (very 
often)  of  their  own  deceptions;  for  deceit  commonly  leads 
to  self-deceit.     Such  a  result  may  well  act  as  a  warning 

25 


386  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

to  Timothy  and  those  committed  to  his  charge  of  the 
peril  of  trifling  with  the  fundamentals  of  religious  truth. 

The  articles  of  the  Christian  faith  are  not  like  the 
commodities  in  a  bazaar  from  which  one  can  pick  and 
choose  at  pleasure,  and  of  which  one  can  take  three  or 
four  without  in  any  way  affecting  one's  relation  to  the 
remainder,  or  reject  three  or  four,  without  in  any  way 
affecting  the  security  of  one's  hold  upon  those  which  one 
decides  to  take.  With  regard  to  the  truths  of  religion, 
our  right  to  pick  and  choose  has  very  strict  limits. 
When  the  system  as  a  whole  has  presented  its  creden- 
tials to  the  reason  and  the  conscience,  and  these  have 
decided  that  the  bearer  of  such  credentials  must  be  the 
representative  of  a  Divine  Being,  then  the  attempt  to 
pick  and  choose  among  the  details  of  the  system 
becomes  perilous  work.  To  reject  this  or  that  item, 
as  being  mere  fringe  and  setting  rather  than  a  consti- 
tuent element,  or  as  being  at  any  rate  unessential,  may 
be  to  endanger  the  whole  structure.  We  may  be 
leaving  an  impregnable  position  for  an  exposed  and 
untenable  one,  or  be  exchanging  a  secure  platform  for 
an  inclined  plane,  on  which  we  shall  find  no  lasting 
resting  place  until  the  bottom  is  reached.  And  this 
was  what  the  men,  against  whom  Timothy  is  warned, 
had  done.  They  had  left  the  sure  position,  and  were 
sometimes  sliding,  sometimes  running,  further  and 
further  away  from  the  truth. 

In  other  words,  there  is  a  right  and  a  wrong  use  of 
reason  in  matters  of  faith.  The  wrong  use  is  some- 
times spoken  of  as  "  Rationalism,"  and  (adopting  that 
term '  as  convenient)  the  following  clear  statement, 
borrowed  from  another  writer,  will  show  in  a  striking 
way  where  it  was  that  St.  Paul  wished  Timothy  to 
part   company   with   the   principles  of  his  opponents. 


iil.  14-17.]    PROPERTIES  OF  INSPIRED   WRITINGS.       387 

'*  As  regards  Revealed  Truth,"  wrote  J.  H.  Newman  in 
1835,  ^'it  is  not  Rationalism  to  set  about  to  ascertain, 
by  the  exercise  of  reason,  what  things  are  attainable  by 
reason,  and  what  are  not ;  nor,  in  the  absence  of  an 
express  Revelation,  to  inquire  into  the  truths  of 
Religion,  as  they  come  to  us  by  nature ;  nor  to  deter- 
mine what  proofs  are  necessary  for  the  acceptance  of  a 
Revelation,  if  it  be  given ;  nor  to  reject  a  Revelation  on 
the  plea  of  insufficient  proof;  nor,  after  recognising  it 
as  Divine,  to  investigate  the  meaning  of  its  declarations, 
and  to  interpret  its  language ;  nor  to  use  its  doctrines, 
as  far  as  they  can  be  fairly  used,  in  inquiring  into  its 
divinity ;  nor  to  compare  and  connect  them  with  our 
previous  knowledge,  with  a  view  of  making  them  parts 
of  a  whole ;  nor  to  bring  them  into  dependence  on  each 
other,  to  trace  their  mutual  relations,  and  to  pursue 
them  to  their  legitimate  issues.  This  is  not  Ration- 
alism. But  it  is  Rationalism  to  accept  the  Revelation, 
and  then  to  explain  it  away  ;  to  speak  of  it  as  the  Word 
of  God,  and  to  treat  it  as  the  word  of  man ;  to  refuse 
to  let  it  speak  for  itself;  to  claim  to  be  told  the  why  and 
the  how  of  God's  dealings  with  us,  as  therein  described, 
and  to  assign  to  Him  a  motive  and  a  scope  of  our  own  \ 
to  stumble  at  the  partial  knowledge  which  He  may  give 
us  of  them  ;  to  put  aside  what  is  obscure,  as  if  it  had 
not.  been  said  at  all ;  to  accept  one  half  of  what  has  been 
told  us,  yand  not  the  other  half;  to  assume  that  the 
contents  of  Revelation  are  also  its  proof;  to  frame  some 
gratuitous  hypothesis  about  them,  and  then  to  garble, 
gloss,  and  colour  them,  to  trim,  clip,  pare  away  and 
twist  them,  in  order  to  bring  them  into  conformity  with 
the  idea  to  which  we  have  subjected  them."* 

*  "Rationalism  in  Religion,"  in  Tracts  for  the  rjw^s,  republished 
m  Essays  Critical  and  Historical,  vol.  i.  p.  32. 


388  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

Timothy  is  to  abide  in  those  things  which  he  has 
"  learned  and  been  assured  of."  He  has  experienced 
the  result  which  St.  Luke  wished  to  produce  in  Theo- 
philus  when  he  wrote  his  Gospel  :  he  has  attained  to 
"  full  knowledge  of  the  certainty  concerning  the  things 
wherein  he  had  been  instructed  "  (Luke  i.  4).  And  he 
is  not  to  allow  the  wild  teaching  of  his  opponents, 
thoroughly  discredited  as  it  is  and  will  be  by  equally 
wild  conduct,  to  shake  his  security.  Not  everything 
that  is  disputed  is  disputable,  nor  everything  that 
is  doubted  doubtful.  And  if  the  fruits  of  the  two  kinds 
of  teaching  do  not  fully  convince  him  of  the  necessity 
of  abiding  by  the  old  truths  rather  than  by  the  sugges- 
tions of  these  innovators,  let  him  remember  those  from 
whom  he  first  learnt  the  truths  of  the  Gospel, — his 
grandmother  Lois,  his  mother  Eunice,  and  the  Apostle 
himself  When  it  comes  to  a  question  of  the  authority 
of  the  teachers,  which  group  will  he  choose  ?  Those  who 
established  him  in  the  faith,  or  those  who  are  trying  to 
seduce  men  away  from  it  ? 

There  is  a  little  doubt  about  the  word  "  of  whom 
thou  hast  learned  them."  The  ^*  whom  "  is  probably 
plural  {irapa  rlvwv) ;  but  a  reading  which  makes  it 
singular  {irapa  rlvo^)  is  strongly  supported.  The 
plural  must  include  all  Timothy's  chief  instructors  in 
the  faith,  especially  the  earliest,  as  is  clear  from  the 
nature  of  the  case  and  from  what  follows.  If  the 
singular  is  adopted,  we  must  refer  it  to  St.  Paul,  in 
accordance  with  "  the  things  which  thou  hast  heard 
from  me  .  .  .  the  same  commit  thou  to  faithful  men" 
(ji.  2).  It  is  possible  that  the  words  just  quoted  have 
influenced  the  reading  in  the  passage  under  considera- 
tion, and  have  caused  the  substitution  of  the  singular 
for  the  plural. 


iii.  14-17.]    PROPERTIES  OF  INSPIRED   WRITINGS.       389 

But  there  is  a  further  consideration.  There  is  not 
only  the  character  of  the  doctrine  on  each  side,  and  the 
fruits  of  the  doctrine  on  each  side,  and  the  teachers  of 
whom  Timothy  has  had  personal  experience,  and  about 
whose  knowledge  and  trustworthiness  he  can  judge; 
there  is  also  the  fact  that  from  his  tenderest  infancy  he 
has  had  the  blessing  of  being  in  contact  with  the  truth, 
first  as  it  is  revealed  in  the  Old  Testament,  and  then 
as  it  is  still  further  revealed  in  the  Gospel.  The  re- 
sponsibilities of  those  who  from  their  earliest  days 
have  been  allowed  to  grow  in  the  knowledge  of  God 
and  of  His  government  of  the  world,  are  far  greater 
than  the  responsibilities  of  those  who  have  had  no 
opportunity  of  acquiring  this  knowledge  until  late  in 
life.  Old  habits  of  thought  and  conduct  are  not  ex- 
tinguished by  baptism ;  and  the  false  opinion  and 
vicious  behaviour  of  many  of  those  who  are  vexing,  or 
will  hereafter  vex,  the  Church  in  Ephesus,  may  be 
traced  to  influences  which  had  become  dominant  in  them 
long  before  they  came  into  contact  with  God's  revealed 
law.  No  such  allowance  can  be  made  for  Timothy. 
He  has  had  the  inestimable  privilege  of  knowing  the 
sacred  writings  from  his  earliest  childhood.  It  will  be 
his  own  fault  if  they  do  not  "  make  him  wise  unto 
salvation  through  faith  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus." 

The  expression  ''  sacred  writings  "  (/e/ja  'ypdfi^ara) 
occurs  nowhere  else  in  the  New  Testament.  The 
usual  expression  is  *'the  scriptures"  (at  ypa(f>ai)  ;  and 
once  (Rom.  i.  2)  we  have  "holy  scriptures"  (jpacpal 
ay  Lav).  Here  both  substantive  and  adjective  are 
unusual.  The  adjective  occurs  in  only  one  other 
passage  in  the  New  Testament,  a  passage  which  throws 
light  upon  this  one.  '*  Know  ye  not  that  they  who 
perform   the  sacred  rites,   from    the   sacred   place  get 


390  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

their  food?"  {Speaker's  Commentary,  on  I  Cor.  ix.  13.) 
And  just  as  in  that  passage  "the  sacred  rites"  are 
the  Jewish  sacrifices,  and  ^'the  sacred  place"  the 
Jewish  Temple,  so  here  ^'  the  sacred  writings  "  are  the 
Jewish  Scriptures.  It  is  utterly  improbable  that  any 
Christian  writings  are  included.  How  could  Timothy 
have  known  any  of  these  from  infancy  ?  Even  at  the 
time  when  St.  Paul  wrote  this  farewell  letter,  there 
was  little  Christian  literature, excepting  his  own  Epistles; 
and  he  was  not  likely  to  speak  of  them  as  '*  sacred 
writings,"  or  to  include  them  under  one  expression  with 
the  Old  Testament  Scriptures.  The  suggestion  that 
Christian  writings  are  included,  or  are  mainly  intended, 
seems  to  be  maade  with  the  intention  of  insinuating  that 
this  letter  cannot  have  been  written  by  the  Apostle,  but 
by  some  one  of  a  later  age.  But  would  even  a  writer 
of  the  second  century  have  made  such  a  blunder  as  to 
represent  Timothy  as  knowing  Christian  literature  from 
his  childhood  ? 

Withtheuseof  the  substantive  "writings"  (ypafifiaTa) 
in  this  passage,  should  be  compared  the  use  of  the 
same  word  in  Christ's  discourse  at  Jerusalem  after  the 
miracle  at  the  pool  of  Bethesda,  where  he  shows  the 
Jews  how  hopeless  their  unbelief  is,  and  how  vain  their 
appeal  to  Moses,  who  is  really  their  accuser.  "  But  if 
ye  believe  not  Ms  writings  {ypd/jLfMara),  how  shall  ye 
believe  My  words  ?  "  The  Jews  had  had  two  opportu- 
nities of  knowing  and  accepting  the  truth  ;  the  writings 
of  Moses,  and  the  words  of  Jesus.  So  also  Timothy 
had  had  two  sets  of  instructors ;  the  holy  women  who 
had  brought  him  up,  whose  work  had  been  completed 
by  the  Apostle,  and  the  sacred  writings.  If  the 
authority  of  the  former  shoud  seem  to  be  open  to 
question,  there  could  be  no  doubt  of  the  sufficiency  of 


lii.  14.17.]    PROPERTIES  OF  INSPIRED    WRITINGS.       391 

the  latter.  They  ''are  able  to  maVe  him  wise  unto 
salvation  through  faith  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus." 

It  must  be  observed  that  the  Apostle  uses  the  present 
tense  and  not  the  past  (Swdfjueva)  in  expressing  the 
power  of  the  sacred  writings  in  communicating  a  saving 
wisdom  to  him  who  uses  them  aright.  This  power 
was  not  exhausted  when  the  young  Timothy  was 
brought  to  the  ampler  truths  of  the  Gospel.  However 
far  advanced  he  may  be  in  sacred  knowledge,  he  will 
still  find  that  they  are  able  to  make  him  increase  in  the 
wisdom  which  enlightens  and  saves  souls. 

But  Scripture  confers  this  life-giving  wisdom  in  no 
mechanical  manner.  It  is  not  a  charm,  which  has  a 
magical  effect  upon  every  one  who  reads  it.  The  most 
diligent  study  of  the  sacred  writings  will  do  nothing 
for  the  salvation  of  a  man  who  does  not  prosecute  his 
researches  in  something  more  than  the  mere  spirit  of 
curious  enquiry.  Therefore  St.  Paul  adds,  ''through 
faith  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus."  It  is  when  this  is 
added  to  the  soul  of  the  enquirer  that  the  sacred 
writings  of  the  Old  Covenant  have  their  illuminating 
power ;  without  it,  so  far  from  leading  to  the  salvation 
won  for  us  by  Christ,  they  may  keep  those  who  study 
them  away  from  the  truth,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Jews 
to  this  day.  The  pillar  of  fire  becomes  a  pillar  of 
cloud,  and  what  should  have  been  for  wealth  becomes 
an  occasion  of  falling. 

"  Every  scripture  inspired  of  God  is  also  profitable 
for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruction 
which  is  in  righteousness."  This  is  the  Revisers' 
rendering.  Besides  one  or  two  smaller  changes,  they 
have  made  two  important  alterations  of  the  A.V. 
(l)  They  have  substituted  "every  scripture"  for 
"  all   scripture,"    without   allowing   the  old    rendering 


392  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

even  a  place  in  the  margin.  (2)  They  have  inserted 
the  "  is  "  (which  must  be  supplied  somewhere  in  the 
sentence)  after  instead  of  before  '*  inspired  by  God ; " 
thus  making  "inspired  by  God"  an  epithet  of  Scripture 
and  not  something  stated  respecting  it.  **  Every  scrip- 
ture inspired  by  God  ^5  also  profitable/'  instead  of  "  ts 
inspired  of  God  and  profitable  : "  but  they  allow  the 
latter  rendering  a  place  in  the  margin. 

This  treatment  of  the  passage  appears  to  be  very 
satisfactory,  so  far  as  the  second  of  these  two  points 
are  concerned.  Certainty  is  not  attainable  in  either. 
Yet,  as  regards  the  second,  the  probabilities  are  greatly 
in  favour  of  the  Apostle's  meaning  that  "inspired 
scripture  is  also  profitable/'  rather  than  "scripture  is 
inspired  and  profitable."  But,  with  regard  to  the  first 
point,  it  may  be  doubted  whether  the  balance  is  so 
decidedly . against  the  translation  "all  scripture"  as  to 
warrant  its  exclusion.  No  doubt  the  absence  of  the 
article  in  the  Greek  {iraaa  <ypa(p/],  and  not  Traaa  rj  jpacf)^) 
is  against  the  old  rendering ;  but  it  is  by  no  means  con- 
clusive, as  other  instances  both  in  the  New  Testament 
and  in  classical  Greek  prove.  *  Nevertheless,  there  is 
the  further  fact  that  in  the  New  Testament  "  the  scrip- 
ture "  generally  means  a  particular  passage  of  Scripture 
(Mark  xii.  10;  Luke  iv.  21  ;  John  xix.  24,  28,  36,  37  ; 
Acts  viii.  32,  35).  When  Scripture  as  a  whole  is 
meant,  the  word  is  commonly  used  in  the  plural,  "  the 
scriptures  "  (Matt.  xxi.  42  ;  Mark  xii.  24 ;  John  v.  39). 
In  the  passage  before  us  the  meaning  is  not  seriously 
affected  by  the  change.     It  matters  little  whether  we 


*  See  the  quotations  given  in  Alford's  note  on  Tcicra  oiKodofiri  in 
Eph.  ii.  21,  which  might  be  increased,  if  necessary:  e.g.  irav  a-Q/xa, 
in  Arist.,  Nic.  E(h.,  I.  xiii.  7,  which  must  —  "  the  whole  body." 


iii.  14-17.]    PROPERTIES  OF  INSPIRED   WRITINGS.       393 

say  "  the  whole  of  scripture,"  or  "  every  passage  of 
scripture." 

^'  Every  scripture  inspired  by  God  is  also  profitable 
for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  disciplines 
(TraiSeLo)  which  is  in  righteousness:"  i.e.,  is  of  use 
both  for  doctrinal  and  for  practical  purposes,  for  in- 
forming both  faith  and  conduct.  It  is  because  it  is 
"  inspired  by  God,"  because  God's  Spirit  breathes 
through  the  whole  of  it,  making  every  passage  of  it  to 
be  a  portion  of  a  living  whole,  that  Scripture  possesses 
this  unique  utility.  And  if  the  Apostle  can  say  this  of 
the  Old  Testament,  much  more  may  we  affirm  it  of  the 
New  Testament.  From  the  two  together,  everything 
that  a  Christian  ought  to  believe,  everything  that  a 
Christian  ought  to  do,  may  be  learned. 

But  while  this  declaration  of  the  Apostle  assures 
us  that  there  is  no  passage  in  Holy  Writ,  which, 
when  properly  handled,  does  not  yield  Divine  instruc- 
tion for  the  guidance  of  our  minds,  and  hearts,  and 
wills,  yet  it  gives  no  encouragement  to  hard  and  fast 
theories  as  to  the  manner  in  which  the  Spirit  of  God 
operated  upon  the  authors  of  the  sacred  writings. 
Inspiration  is  no  mechanical  process.  It  is  altogether 
misleading  to  speak  of  it  as  Divine  dictation,  which 
would  reduce  inspired  writers  to  mere  machines. 
There  are  certain  things  which  it  clearly  does  not 
do. 

I.  While  it  governs  the  substance  of  what  is  written, 
it  does  not  govern  the  language  word  by  word.  We 
have  no  reasons  for  believing  in  verbal  inspiration,  and 
have  many  reasons  for  not  believing  in  it.  For  no  one 
believes  that  copyists  and  printers  are  miraculously 
preserved  from  making  verbal  mistakes.  Is  it,  then, 
reasonable  to  suppose  that  God  would  work  a  miracle 


394  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

to  produce  what  He  takes  no  care  to  preserve.  Of  the 
countless  various  readings,  which  are  the  words  which 
are  inspired  ? 

2.  Inspiration  does  not  preserve  the  inspired  writers 
from  every  kind  of  mistake.  That  it  guards  them  from 
error  in  respect  to  matters  of  faith  and  morality,  we 
may  well  believe ;  but  whether  it  does  more  than  this 
remains  to  be  proved.  On  the  other  hand  it  can  be 
proved  that  it  does  not  preserve  them  from  mistakes  in 
grammar ;  for  there  is  plenty  of  unquestionably  bad 
grammar  in  the  Bible.  Look  for  instance  at  the  Greek 
of  Mark  vi.  8,  9 ;  Acts  xv.  22 ;  xix.  34 ;  Eph.  iv.  2  ; 
Col.  iii.  16;  Rev.  vii.  9;  etc.,  etc.  And  it  may  be 
doubted  whether  inspiration  preserves  the  inspired 
writer  from  all  possibility  of  error  as  regards  matters 
of  fact,  as  to  whether  there  were  two  men  healed  or 
only  one.;  as  to  whether  the  healing  took  place  as 
Christ  entered  the  city  or  as  He  left  it ;  as  to  whether 
the  prophecy  quoted  comes  from  Jeremiah  or  Zechariah, 
and  the  like.  Can  there  be  any  reasonable  doubt  that 
St.  Matthew  has  made  a  sHp  in  writing  "Zechariah 
the  son  of  Barachiah "  instead  of  "  Zechariah  the  son 
of  Jehoiada "  ?  And  is  there  any  honest  method  of 
bringing  St.  Stephen's  speech  into  complete  harmony 
with  statements  in  the  Old  Testament  respecting  all 
the  facts  mentioned  ?  Must  we  not  suppose  that  there 
is  error  on  one  side  or  the  other  ?  If,  as  is  quite 
certain,  inspiration  does  not  make  a  man  a  grammatical 
scholar,  or  give  him  a  perfect  literary  style,  ought  we 
to  conclude  that  it  will  make  him  a  faultless  historian 
or  chronologer?  A  Divine  Revelation  through  a  series 
of  inspired  writers  has  been  granted  in  order  to  save 
our  souls.  We  have  no  right  to  assume  that  it  has 
been   granted   in    order   to   save   us   trouble.      Those 


iii.  14-17.]    PROPERTIES  OF  INSPIRED   WRITINGS.       39$ 

saving  truths  about  God  and  our  relations  to  Him, 
which  we  could  never  have  discovered  without  a  reve- 
lation, we  may  expect  to  find  set  forth  without  taint  of 
error  in  the  sacred  writings.  But  facts  of  geology,  or 
history,  or  physiology,  which  our  own  intelligence  and 
industry  can  discover,  we  ought  not  to  expect  to  find 
accurately  set  forth  for  us  in  the  Bible :  and  we  ought 
to  require  very  full  evidence  before  deciding  that  in  such 
matters  inspired  writers  may  be  regarded  as  infallible. 
St.  Luke  tells  us  in  the  Preface  to  his  Gospel  that  he 
took  great  pains  to  obtain  the  best  information.  Need 
he  have  done  so,  if  inspiration  protected  him  from  all 
possibility  of  mistake  ? 

3.  Inspiration  does  not  override  and  overwhelm  the 
inspired  writer's  personal  characteristics.  There  appears 
to  be  no  such  thing  as  an  inspired  style.  The  style  of 
St.  John  is  as  different  from  that  of  St.  Paul  as  the 
style  of  Bishop  Butler  is  from  that  of  Jeremy  Taylor. 
Each  inspired  writer  uses  the  language,  and  the  illus- 
trations, and  the  arguments  that  are  natural  and 
familiar  to  him.  If  he  has  an  argumentative  mind,  he 
argues  his  points  ;  if  he  has  not,  he  states  them  without 
argument.  If  he  has  literary  skill,  he  exhibits  it ;  if  he 
has  none,  inspiration  does  not  give  it  to  him.  "  No 
inspiration  theory  can  stand  for  a  moment  which  does 
not  leave  room  for  the  personal  agency  and  individual 
peculiarities  of  the  sacred  authors  and  the  exercise 
of  their  natural  faculties  in  writing"  (Schaff,  Apostolic 
Christianity^  p.  608). 

What  inspiration  has  not  done  in  these  various 
particulars  is  manifest  to  every  one  who  studies  the 
sacred  writings.  What  it  has  done  is  scarcely  less 
manifest,  and  is  certainly  much  more  generally  recog- 
nized.    It  has  produced  writings  which  are  absolutely 


396  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

without  a  parallel  in  the  literature  of  the  world.  Even 
as  regards  literary  merits  they  have  few  rivals.  But 
it  is  not  in  their  literary  beauty  that  their  unique 
character  consists.  It  lies  rather  in  their  lofty  spiritu- 
ality ;  their  inexhaustible  capacities  for  instruction  and 
consolation;  their  boundless  adaptability  to  all  ages 
and  circumstances  ;  above  all,  in  their  ceaseless  power 
of  satisfying  the  noblest  cravings  and  aspirations  of  the 
human  heart.  Other  writings  are  profitable  for  know- 
ledge, for  advancement,  for  amusement,  for  delight,  for 
wealth.  But  these  "  make  wise  unto  salvation."  They 
produce  that  discipline  which  has  its  sphere  in  right- 
eousness. They  have  power  to  instruct  the  ignorant, 
to  convict  the  guilty,  to  reclaim  the  fallen,  to  school  all 
in  holiness ;  that  all  may  be  complete  as  men  of  God, 
"  furnished  completely  unto  every  good  work." 


CHAPTER   XXXV. 

THE  PARADOXICAL  EXULTATION  OF  THE  APOSTLE.— 
HIS  APPARENT  FAILURE  AND  THE  APPARENT 
FAILURE  OF  THE  CHURCH— THE  GREAT  TEST 
OF  SINCERITY. 

"  But  be  thou  sober  in  all  things,  suffer  hardship,  do  the  work  of 
an  evangelist,  fulfil  thy  ministry.  For  I  am  already  being  offered, 
and  the  time  of  my  departure  is  come.  I  have  fought  the  good  fight, 
I  have  finished  the  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith :  henceforth  there  is 
laid  up  for  me  the  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the 
righteous  judge,  shall  give  to  me  at  that  day :  and  not  only  to  me,  but 
also  to  all  them  that  have  loved  His  appearing." — 2  Tim.  xv.  5 — 8. 

ST.  CHRYSOSTOM  tells  us  that  this  passage  was 
for  a  long  time  a  source  of  perplexity  to  him. 
^'  Often,"  he  says,  **  when  I  have  taken  the  Apostle 
into  my  hands  and  have  considered  this  passage,  I 
have  been  at  a  loss  to  understand  why  Paul  here  speaks 
so  loftily  :  /  have  fought  the  good  fight.  But  now  by 
the  grace  of  God  I  seem  to  have  found  it  out.  For 
what  purpose  then  does  he  speak  thus  ?  He  writes  to 
console  the  despondency  of  his  disciple ;  and  he  there- 
fore bids  him  be  of  good  cheer,  since  he  was  going  to 
his  crown,  having  finished  all  his  work  and  obtained  a 
glorious  end.  Thou  oughtest  to  rejoice,  he  says ;  not 
to  grieve.  And  why  ?  Because  /  have  fought  the  good 
fight.  Just  as  a  son,  who  was  sitting  bewailing  his 
orphan  state,  might  be  consoled  by  his  father  saying  to 
him,  Weep  not,  my  son.     We  have  lived  a  good  life; 


39^  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

we  have  reached  old  age ;  and  now  we  are  leaving 
thee.  Our  life  has  been  free  from  reproach;  we  are 
departing  with  glory ;  and  thou  mayest  be  held  in 
honour  for  what  we  have  done.  .  .  .  And  this  he  says 
not  boastfully ; — God  forbid  ; — but  in  order  to  raise  up 
his  dejected  son,  and  to  encourage  him  by  his  praises 
to  bear  firmly  what  had  come  to  pass,  to  entertain  good 
hopes,  and  not  to  think  it  a  matter  grievous  to  be 
borne." 

Chrysostom's  explanation  is  no  doubt  part  of  the 
reason  why  the  Apostle  here  speaks  in  so  exalted  a 
key.  This  unusual  strain  is  partly  the  result  of  a  wish 
to  cheer  his  beloved  disciple  and  assure  him  that  there 
is  no  need  to  grieve  for  the  death  which  now  cannot  be 
very  far  off.  When  it  comes,  it  will  be  a  glorious 
death  and  a  happy  one.  A  glorious  death,  for  it  will 
crown  with  the  crown  of  victory  struggles  in  a  weary 
contest  which  is  now  ending  triumphantly.  And  a 
happy  death  ;  for  Paul  has  for  years  had  the  longing  "  to 
depart  and  be  with  Christ,  which  is  far  better."  The 
crown  is  one  which  will  not  wither  ;  for  it  is  not  made  of 
olive,  bay,  or  laurel.  And  it  is  not  one  of  which  the 
glory  is  doubtful,  or  dependent  upon  the  fickle  opinions 
of  a  prejudiced  crowd;  for  it  is  not  awarded  by  a 
human  umpire,  nor  amid  the  applauses  of  human 
spectators.  The  Giver  is  Christ,  and  the  theatre  is 
filled  with  angels.  In  the  contests  of  this  world  men 
labour  many  days  and  suffer  hardships  ;  and  for  one 
hour  they  receive  the  crown.  And  forthwith  all  the 
pleasure  of  it  passes  away.  In  the  good  fight  which 
St.  Paul  fought  a  crown  of  righteousness  is  won,  which 
continues  for  ever  in  brightness  and  glory. 

But  besides  wishing  to  console  Timothy  for  the  be- 
reavement which  was  impending,  St.  Paul  also  wished 


iv.  5-8.]        THE  GREAT  TEST  OF  SINCE RTTY.  399 

to  encourage  him,  to  stimulate  him  to  greater  exertion 
and  to  a  larger  measure  of  courage.  *^  Be  thou  sober  in 
all  things,  suffer  hardship,  do  the  work  of  an  Evangelist, 
fulfil  thy  ministry.  For  /  am  already  being  poured  out 
as  a  drink-offering,  and  the  time  of  my  departure  is  at 
hand."  That  is :  You  must  be  more  vigorous,  more 
enduring,  more  devoted ;  for  /  am  going  away,  and 
must  leave  you  to  carry  on  to  perfection  that  which  I 
have  begun.  My  fighting  is  over;  therefore  do  you 
fight  more  bravely.  My  course  is  finished ;  therefore 
do  you  run  more  perseveringly.  The  faith  entrusted 
to  me  has  been  preserved  thus  far  inviolate :  see  to  it, 
that  what  has  been  entrusted  to  you  be  kept  safe.  The 
crown  which  righteousness  wins  is  waiting  now  for 
me :  so  strive  that  such  a  crown  may  await  you  also. 
For  this  is  a  contest  in  which  all  may  have  crowns,  if 
only  they  will  live  so  as  to  feel  a  longing  for  the  ap- 
pearing of  the  righteous  Judge  who  gives  them. 

But  there  is  more  in  this  passage  than  the  desire  to 
comfort  Timothy  for  the  approaching  loss  of  his  friend 
and  instructor,  and  the  desire  to  spur  him  on  to 
greater  usefulness,  not  merely  in  spite  of,  but  because 
of,  that  loss.  There  is  also  the  ecstatic  joy  of  the 
great  Apostle,  as  with  the  eye  of  faith  he  looks  back 
over  the  work  which  he  has  been  enabled  to  perform, 
and  balances  the  cost  of  it  against  the  great  reward. 

As  has  been  already  pointed  out  in  an  earlier 
passage,  there  is  nothing  in  this  touching  letter  which 
is  more  convincingly  like  St.  Paul  than  the  way  in 
which  conflicting  emotions  succeed  one  another  and 
come  to  the  surface  in  perfectly  natural  expression. 
Sometimes  it  is  anxiety  that  is  uppermost ;  sometimes 
it  is  confidence.  Here  he  is  overflowing  with  affection  ; 
there   he   is  stern  and   indignant.      One  while   he   is 


4«)  THR  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

deeply  depressed  ;  and  then  again  becomes  triumphant 
and  exulting.  Like  the  second  Epistle  to  the  Corinth- 
ians this  last  letter  to  the  beloved  disciple  is  full  of 
intense  personal  feelings,  of  a  different  and  apparently 
discordant  character.  The  passage  before  us  is  charged 
with  such  emotions,  beginning  with  solemn  warning  and 
ending  in  lofty  exultation.  But  it  is  the  warning,  not 
of  fear,  but  of  affection ;  and  it  is  the  exultation,  not  of 
sight,  but  of  faith. 

Looked  at  with  human  eyes  the  Apostle's  life  at  that 
moment  was  a  failure, — a  tragic  and  dismal  failure. 
In  his  own  simple  but  most  pregnant  language,  he  had 
been  "  the  slave  of  Jesus  Christ."  No  Roman  slave, 
driven  by  whip  and  goad,  could  have  been  made  to 
work  as  Paul  had  worked.  He  had  taxed  his  fragile 
body  and  sensitive  spirit  to  the  utmost,  and  had 
encountered  lifelong  opposition,  derision,  and  persecu- 
tion, at  the  hands  of  those  who  ought  to  have  been  his 
friends,  and  had  been  his  friends  until  he  entered  the 
service  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  had  preached  and  argued, 
had  entreated  and  rebuked,  and  in  doing  so  had  rung 
the  changes  on  all  the  chief  forms  of  human  suffering. 
And  what  had  been  the  outcome  of  it  all  ?  The  few 
Churches  which  he  had  founded  were  but  as  handfuls 
in  the  cities  in  which  he  had  established  them ;  and 
there  were  countless  cities  in  which  he  had  established 
nothing.  Even  the  few  Churches  which  he  had 
succeeded  in  founding  had  in  most  cases  soon  fallen 
away  from  their  first  faith  and  enthusiasm.  The 
Thessalonians  had  become  tainted  with  idleness  and 
disorder,  the  Corinthians  with  contentiousness  and 
sensuality,  the  Galatians,  Colossians,  and  Ephesians 
with  various  forms  of  heresy  ;  while  the  Roman  Church, 
in  the  midst  of  which  he  was  suffering  an  imprisonment 


iv.  5-8.]        THE   GREAT  TEST  OF  SINCERITY,  40I 

which  would  almost  certainly  end  in  death,  was  treat- 
ing him  with  coldness  and  neglect.  At  his  first  defence 
no  one  took  his  part,  but  all  forsook  him ;  and  in  his 
extremity  he  was  almost  deserted.  As  the  results  of 
a  life  of  intense  energy  and  self-devotion,  all  these 
things  had  the  appearance  of  total  failure. 

And  certainly  if  the  work  of  his  life  seemed  to  have 
been  a  failure  with  regard  to  others,  it  did  not  bear 
any  resemblance  to  success  as  regards  himself.  From 
the  world's  point  of  view  he  had  given  up  much,  and 
gained  little,  beyond  trouble  and  disgrace.  He  had 
given  up  a  distinguished  position  in  the  Jewish  Church, 
in  order  to  become  the  best  hated  man  among  that 
people  of  passionate  hatreds.  While  his  efforts  on 
behalf  of  the  Gentiles  had  ended  for  a  third  time  in 
confinement  in  a  Gentile  prison,  from  which,  as  he  saw 
clearly,  nothing  but  death  was  likely  to  release  him. 

And  yet,  in  spite  of  all  this,  St.  Paul  is  exultingly 
triumphant.  Not  at  all  because  he  does  not  perceive, 
or  cannot  feel,  the  difficulties  and  sorrows  of  his 
position.  Still  less  because  he  wishes  to  dissemble 
either  to  himself  or  others  the  sufferings  which  he  has 
to  endure.  He  is  no  Stoic,  and  makes  no  profession  of 
being  above  human  infirmities  and  human  emotions. 
He  is  keenly  sensitive  to  all  that  affects  his  own 
aspirations  and  affections  and  the  well-being  of  those 
whom  he  loves.  He  is  well  aware  of  the  dangers  both 
of  body  and  soul  which  beset  those  who  are  far  dearer 
to  him  than  life.  And  he  gives  strong  expression  to 
his  trouble  and  anxiety.  But  he  measures  the  troubles 
of  time  by  the  glories  of  eternity.  With  the  eye  of 
faith  he  looks  across  all  this  apparent  failure  and 
neglect  to  the  crown  of  righteousness  which  the 
righteous  Judge  has  in  store  for  him,  and  for  thousands 

2^ 


40i  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

upon  thousands  of  others  also, — even  for  all  those  who 
have  learned  to  look  forward  with  longing  to  the  time 
when  their  Lord  shall  appear  again. 

In  all  this  we  see  in  miniature  the  history  of 
Christendom  since  the  Apostle's  death.  His  career 
was  a  fore-shadowing  of  the  career  of  the  Christian 
Church.  In  both  cases  there  appears  to  be  only  a 
handful  of  real  disciples  with  a  company  of  shallow 
and  fickle  followers,  to  set  against  the  stolid,  unmoved 
mass  of  the  unconverted  world.  In  both  cases,  even 
among  the  disciples  themselves,  there  is  the  cowardice 
of  many,  and  the  desertions  of  some.  In  both  cases 
those  who  remain  true  to  the  faith  dispute  among 
themselves  which  of  them  shall  be  accounted  the 
greatest.  St.  Paul  was  among  the  first  to  labour  that 
Christ's  ideal  of  one  holy  catholic  Church  might  be 
realized.  Eighteen  centuries  have  passed  away,  and 
the  life  of  the  Church,  like  that  of  St.  Paul,  looks  like  a 
failure.  With  more  than  half  the  human  race  still  not 
even  nominally  Christian ;  with  long  series  of  crimes 
committed  not  only  in  defiance,  but  in  the  name,  of 
religion ;  with  each  decade  of  years  producing  its 
unwholesome  crop  of  heresies  and  schisms; — what  has 
become  of  the  Church's  profession  of  being  catholic, 
holy,  and  united  ? 

The  failure,  as  in  St.  Paul's  case,  is  more  apparent 
than  real.  And  it  must  be  noted  at  the  outset  that  our 
means  of  gauging  success  in  spiritual  things  are 
altogether  uncertain  and  inadequate.  Anything  at  all 
like  scientific  accuracy  is  quite  out  of  our  reach,  because 
the  data  for  a  trustworthy  conclusion  cannot  be 
obtained.  But  the  case  is  far  stronger  than  this.  It 
is  impossible  to  determine  even  roughly  where  the 
benefits  conferred  by  the  Gospel  end ;  what  the  average 


iv.  5-8.]        THE  GREAT  TEST  OF  SINCERITY,  403 

holiness  among  professing  Christians  really  is;  and 
to  what  extent  Christendom,  in  spite  of  its  manifold 
divisions,  is  really  one.  It  is  more  than  possible  that 
the  savage  in  central  Africa  is  spiritually  the  better  for 
the  Incarnation  of  which  he  knows  nothing,  and  which 
his  whole  life  seems  to  contradict;  for  at  least  he  is 
one  of  those  for  whom  Christ  was  born  and  died.  It  is 
probable  that  among  quite  ordinary  Christians  there 
are  many  whom  the  world  knows  as  sinners,  but  whom 
God  knows  as  saints.  And  it  is  certain  that  a  beUef 
in  a  Triune  God  and  in  a  common  Redeemer  unites 
millions  far  more  closely  than  their  differences  about 
ministers  and  sacraments  keeps  them  apart.  The 
Church's  robe  is  tattered  and  travel-stained ;  but  she  is 
still  the  Bride  of  Christ,  and  her  children,  however 
much  they  may  quarrel  among  themselves,  are  still  one 
in  Hpm. 

And  where  the  failure  of  St.  Paul  and  of  those  who 
have  followed  him  can  be  shown  to  be  unquestionably 
real,  it  can  generall}^  be  shown  to  be  thoroughly  intelli- 
gible. Although  Divine  in  its  origin,  the  Gospel  has 
from  the  first  used  human  instruments  with  all  the 
weaknesses, — physical,  intellectual,  and  moral, — which 
characterize  humanity.  When  we  remember  what  this 
implies,  and  also  remember  the  forces  against  which 
Christianity  has  had  to  contend,  the  marvel  rather  is 
that  the  Gospel  has  had  so  large  a  measure  of  success, 
than  that  its  success  is  not  yet  complete.  It  has 
had  to  fight  against  the  passions  and  prejudices  of 
individuals  and  nations,  debased  by  long  centuries  of 
immorality  and  ignorance,  and  strengthened  in  their 
opposition  to  the  truth  by  all  the  powers  of  darkness. 
It  has  had  to  fight,  moreover,  with  other  religions, 
many  of  which  are  attractive  by  their  concessions  to 


404  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO   TIMOTHY, 

human  frailty,  and  others  by  the  comparative  purity 
of  their  rites  and  doctrines.  And  against  them  all  it 
has  won,  and  continues  to  win,  man's  approbation  and 
affection,  by  its  power  of  satisfying  his  highest  aspira- 
tions and  his  deepest  needs.  No  other  religion  or 
philosophy  has  had  success  so  various  or  so  far  reaching. 
The  Jew  and  the  Mahometan,  after  centuries  of  inter- 
course, remain  almost  without  influence  upon  European 
minds ;  while  to  Western  civilization  the  creed  of 
the  Buddhist  remains  not  only  without  influence,  but 
without  meaning.  But  the  nation  has  not  yet  been 
found  to  which  Christianity  has  been  proved  to  be 
unintelligible  or  unsuitable.  To  whatever  quarter  of 
the  globe  we  look,  or  to  whatever  period  of  history 
during  the  Christian  era,  the  answer  is  still  the  same. 
Multitudes  of  men,  throughout  eighteen  centuries, 
under  the  utmost  variety  of  conditions,  whether 
of  personal  equipment  or  of  external  circumstance, 
have  made  trial  of  Christianity,  and  have  found 
it  satisfying.  They  have  testified  as  the  result  of 
their  countless  experiences  that  it  can  stand  the  wear 
and  tear  of  life;  that  it  can  not  only  fortify  but 
console;  and  that  it  can  rob  even  death  of  its  sting 
and  the  grave  of  its  victory  by  a  sure  and  certain  hope 
of  the  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  righteous 
Judge  prepares  for  all  those  who  love,  and  have  long 
loved,  His  appearing. 

"Who  have  loved  and  do  love  His  appearing."* 
That  is  the  full  force  of  the  Greek  perfect  {joi^ 
r\^a'Tnf]KO(jiv)^  which  expresses  the  present  and  perma- 

*  The  somewhat  unusual  word  here  used  for  Christ's  second 
coming  (iiri^dveia)  has  been  condemned  as  un-Pauline ;  but  it  occurs 
2  Thess.  ii.  8,  and  the  cognate  verb  (pavepovv  is  found  Col.  iii.  4. 
Cf.  2  Tim.  i.  lo ;  iv.  I ;  Tit.  ii.  13 ;  i  Tim.  vi.  14, 


iv.  5-8.]         THE   GREAT  TEST  OF  SINCERITY.  405 

nent  result  of  past  action ;  and  therein  lies  the  test 
whereby  to  try  the  temper  of  our  Christianity.  St. 
Paul,  who  had  long  yearned  to  depart  and  be  with 
Christ,  could  not  easily  have  given  a  more  simple  or 
sure  method  of  finding  out  who  those  are  who  have  a 
right  to  believe  that  the  Lord  has  a  crown  of  righteous- 
ness in  store  for  them.  Are  we  among  the  number  ? 
In  order  to  answer  this  question  we  must  ask  ourselves 
another.  Are  our  lives  such  that  we  are  longing  for 
Christ's  return  ?  Or  are  we  dreading  it,  because  we 
know  that  we  are  not  fit  to  meet  Him,  and  are  making 
no  attempt  to  become  so.  Supposing  that  physicians 
were  to  tell  us,  that  we  are  smitten  with  a  deadly 
disease,  which  must  end  fatally,  and  that  very  soon, — 
what  would  be  our  feeling  ?  When  the  first  shock 
was  over,  and  we  were  able  to  take  a  calm  view  of  the 
whole  case,  could  we  welcome  the  news  as  the  unex- 
pected fulfilment  of  a  long  cherished  wish  that  Christ 
would  deliver  us  out  of  the  miseries  of  this  sinful  world 
and  take  us  to  Himself?  The  Bible  sets  before  us  the 
crown  of  righteousness  which  fadeth  not  away,  and 
the  worm  which  never  dieth.  Leaning  upon  God's 
unfailing  love  let  us  learn  to  long  for  the  coming  of 
the  one  ;  and  then  we  shall  have  no  need  to  dread,  or 
even  to  ask  the  meaning  of,  the  other. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

THE  PERSONAL  DETAILS  A    GUARANTEE  OP 
GENUINENESS. 

"  Do  thy  diligence  to  come  shortly  unto  rae :  For  Demas  forsook 
me,  having  loved  this  present  world,  and  went  to  Thessalonica ; 
Crescens  to  Galatia,  Titus  unto  Dalmatia.  Only  Luke  is  with  me. 
Take  Mark,  and  bring  him  with  thee:  for  he  is  useful  to  me  for 
ministering.  But  Tychicus  I  sent  to  Ephesus.  The  cloke  that  I  left 
,at  Troas  with  Carpus,  bring  when  thou  comest,  and  the  books, 
especially  the  parchments.  Alexander  the  coppersmith  did  me 
much  evil :  the  Lord  will  render  to  him  according  to  his  works  :  of 
whom  be  thou  ware  also;  for  he  greatly  withstood  our  words." — 
2  Tim.  iv.  9 — 15. 

"  Salute  Prisca  and  Aquila,  and  the  house  of  Onesiphorus. 
Erastus  abode  at  Corinth  :  but  Trophimus  I  left  at  Miletus  sick. 
Do  thy  diligence  to  come  before  winter.  Eubulus  saluteth  thee, 
and  Pudens,  and  Linus,  and  Claudia,  and  all  the  brethren." 
vv.  19—21. 

IT  would  scarcely  be  exceeding  the  limits  of 
legitimate  hyperbole  to  say  that  these  two  pas- 
sages prove  the  authenticity  and  genuineness  of  the 
Pastoral  Epistles ;  that  they  are  sufficient  to  show 
that  these  letters  are  an  authentic  account  of  the 
matters  of  which  they  treat,  and  that  they  are  genuine 
letters  of  the  Apostle  Paul. 

In  the  first  of  these  expositions  it  was  pointed  out 
how  improbable  it  is  that  a  portion  of  one  of  these 
letters  should  be  genuine,  and  not  the  remainder  of 
it ;  or  that  one  of  the  three  should  be  genuine,  and  not 


PERSONAL  DETAILS  GUARANTEE  GENUINENESS.  407 

the  other  two ;  and    a  fortiori,  that  two  of  the  three 
should  be  genuine,  and  not  the  remaining  one. 

The  passages  before  us  are  among  those  of  which 
it  has  been  truly  said  that  they  "  cling  so  closely 
to  Paul  that  it  is  only  by  tearing  the  letter  to  pieces 
that  any  part  can  be  dissociated  from  that  Apostle."* 
The  internal  evidence  is  here  too  strong  even  for 
those  critics  who  deny  the  Pauline  authorship  of  the 
Pastoral  Epistles  as  a  whole.  Thus  Renan  and 
Weisse  are  disposed  to  admit  that  we  have  here 
embedded  in  the  work  of  a  later  writer  portions  of  a 
genuine  letter  of  the  Apostle ;  while  Ewald,  Hausrath, 
and  Pfleiderer  accept  not  only  these  verses,  but 
the  earlier  passage  about  Phygelus,  Hermogenes,  and 
Onesiphorus  as  genuine  also.  Similar  views  are 
advocated  by  Hitzig,  Krenkel,  and  Immer,  of  whom 
the  two  first  admit  that  the  Epistle  to  Titus  also  con- 
tains genuine  fragments.  And  quite  recently  (1882) 
we  have  Lemme  contending  that  only  the  central 
portion  of  2  Timothy  (ii.  1 1  to  iv.  5)  is  an  interpolation. 

These  concessions  amount  to  a  concession  of  the 
whole  case.  It  is  impossible  to  stop  there.  Either 
much  more  must  be  conceded  or  much  less.  For,  (i) 
we  cannot  without  very  strong  evidence  indeed 
accept  so  improbable  a  supposition  as  that  a  Christian 
long  after  the  Apostle's  death  was  in  possession  of 
letters  written  by  him,  of  which  no  one  else  knew 
anything,  that  he  worked  bits  of  these  into  writings 
of  his  own,  which  he  wished  to  pass  off  as  Apostolic, 
and  that   he   then    destroyed    the   genuine  letters,    or 

*  Salmon's  Historical  Introduction  to  the  New  Testament,  p.  426, 
3rd  ed.,  to  which  the  writer  of  this  exposition  is  under  great 
obligations.  The  book  should  be  in  the  hands  of  every  student  of 
the  N.  T. 


4o8  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

disposed  of  them  in  such  a  way  that  no  one  knew  that 
they  had  ever  existed.  Such  a  story  is  not  absolutely 
impossible,  but  it  is  so  unlikely  to  be  true,  that  to 
accept  it  without  clear  evidence  would  be  most  un- 
critical. And  there  is  not  only  no  clear  evidence ; 
there  is  no  evidence  at  all.  The  hypothesis  is  pure 
imagination.  (2)  The  portions  of  this  letter  which  are 
allowed  by  adverse  critics  to  be  genuine  are  precisely 
those  in  which  a  forger  would  be  pretty  sure  to  be 
caught  tripping.  They  are  full  of  personal  details, 
some  of  which  admit  of  being  tested,  and  all  of  which 
can  be  criticized,  as  to  whether  they  are  natural 
and  consistent  or  not.  Would  a  forger  be  likely  to 
risk  detection  by  venturing  on  such  dangerous  ground  ? 
He  would  put  into  the  letter  those  doctrines  for  which 
he  wished  to  appear  to  have  St.  Paul's  authority ; 
and,  if  he  added  anything  else,  he  would  take  care  not 
to  go  beyond  vague  generalities,  too  indefinite  to  be 
caught  in  the  meshes  of  criticism.  But  the  writer  of 
this  letter  has  done  the  reverse  of  all  this.  He  has 
given  an  abundance  of  personal  detail,  such  as  can  be 
found  in  only  one  other  place  in  the  New  Testament, 
and  that  in  the  concluding  portion  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  one  of  the  indisputable  writings  of  St.  Paul. 

And  he  has  not  been  caught  tripping.  Hostile 
writers  have  subjected  these  details  to  the  most  search- 
ing criticism  ;  and  the  result,  as  we  have  seen,  is  that 
many  of  them  are  constrained  to  admit  that  these 
portions  of  the  letter  are  genuine  productions  of  the 
Apostle.  That  is,  those  portions  of  the  Epistle  which 
can  be  subjected  to  a  severe  test,  are  allowed  to  be 
by  St.  Paul,  because  they  stand  the  test ;  while  those 
which  do  not  admit  of  being  thus  tested  are  rejected, 
not  because  there  is  any  proof  of  their  being  spurious^ 


PERSONAL  DETAILS  GUARANTEE  GENUINENESS.  409 

but  because  critics  think  that  the  style  is  not  hke  the 
Apostle's.  Would  they  not  be  the  first  to  deride 
others  for  such  an  opinion  ?  Supposing  that  these 
details  had  contained  absurdities  or  contradictions, 
which  could  not  have  been  written  by  St.  Paul,  would 
they  not  have  maintained,  and  reasonably  main- 
tained, that  it  was  monstrous  to  surrender  as  spurious 
those  sections  of  the  letter  which  had  been  tested  and 
found  wanting,  and  to  defend  as  genuine  the  other 
sections,  which  did  not  admit  of  being  tested  ? 

Let  us  look  at  the  details  a  little  more  closely. 
Besides  St.  Paul  and  Timothy,  twenty-three  Christians 
of  the  Apostolic  age  are  mentioned  in  this  short  letter. 
A  considerable  number  of  these  are  persons  of  whom 
we  read  in  the  Acts  or  in  St.  Paul's  other  letters  ;  but 
the  majority  are  new  names,  and  in  most  of  these  cases 
we  know  nothing  about  the  bearers  of  the  names 
beyond  what  is  told  us  here.  Would  a  forger  have 
given  us  this  mixture  of  known  and  unknown  ?  If  he 
ventured  upon  names  at  all,  would  he  not  either  have 
given  us  imaginary  persons,  whose  names  and  actions 
could  not  be  checked  by  existing  records,  or  else  have 
kept  closely  to  the  records,  so  that  the  checking  might 
tell  in  his  favour  ?  He  has  done  neither.  The  new 
names  do  not  look  like  those  of  imaginary  persons, 
and  the  mention  of  known  persons  is  by  no  means 
a  mere  reproduction  of  what  is  said  of  them  elsewhere. 

"  Demas  forsook  me,  having  loved  this  present 
world.  .  .  .  Take  Mark  and  bring  him  with  thee  :  for 
he  is  useful  to  me  for  ministering."  A  forger  with  the 
Acts  and  the  Epistles  to  the  Colossians  and  Philemon 
before  him  would  have  made  Mark  forsake  Paul,  and 
Demas  be  commended  as  useful  to  him  ;  for  in  the 
Acts  (xv.  38)  Paul  had  to  condemn  Mark  for  slackness, 


410  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO  TIMOTHY. 

and  in  the  Epistles  to  the  Colossians  (iv.  14)  and  to 
Philemon  (24)  Demas  with  Luke  is  waiting  on  the 
Apostle  in  his  imprisonment.  And  yet  how  natural 
that  the  Apostle's  condemnation  should  rouse  Mark 
to  greater  earnestness,  and  that  the  Apostle  should 
recognize  that  earnestness  in  this  farewell  letter  ?  And 
how  consistent  with  human  frailty  also  that  Demas 
should  have  courage  enough  to  stand  by  St.  Paul 
during  his  first  Roman  imprisonment,  and  yet  should 
quail  before  the  greater  risks  of  the  second  !  That  the 
Apostle's  complaint  respecting  him  means  more  than 
this,  is  unlikely.  Yet  some  have  exaggerated  it  into 
a  charge  of  heresy,  or  even  utter  apostasy.  We  are 
simply  to  understand  that  Demas  preferred  comfort 
and  security  away  from  Rome  to  the  hardship  and 
danger  of  a  Roman  prison  ;  and  therefore  went  to 
Thessalonica.  Why  he  selected  that  town  we  are  not 
told,  but  there  being  a  Christian  community  there 
would  be  one  reason. 

"Titus  to  Dalmatia."  Why  should  a  forger  send 
Titus  to  Dalmatia  ?  The  Pastoral  Epistles,  whether 
a  forgery  or  not,  are  all  by  one  hand,  and  seem  to 
have  been  written  within  a  short  time  of  one  another. 
Would  not  a  forger  have  sent  Titus  either  to  Crete 
(Tit.  i.  5),  or  to  Nicopolis  (Tit.  iii.  12)  ?  But  if  Titus 
went  to  Nicopolis,  and  failed  to  find  Paul  there,  owing 
to  his  having  been  meanwhile  arrested,  what  more 
probable  than  that  he  should  go  on  into  Dalmatia  ? 
The  forger,  if  he  had  thought  of  this,  would  have 
called  attention  to  it,  to  ensure  that  his  ingenuity  was 
not  overlooked. 

"  But  Tychicus  I  sent  to  Ephesus."  The  meaning 
of  the  *^  but "  is  not  quite  clear.  Perhaps  the  most 
probable  supposition  is  that  it  indicates  the  reason  why 


PERSONAL  DETAILS  GUARANTEE  GENUINENESS.  411 

the  Apostle  needs  a  useful  person  like  Mark.  "  I  had 
such  a  person  in  Tychicus ;  but  he  is  gone  on  a  mission 
for  me  to  Ephesus."  How  natural  all  this  is  !  And 
what  could  induce  a  forger  to  put  it  in  ?  We  are  told 
in  the  Acts  that  Tychicus  belonged  to  the  Roman 
province  of  Asia  (xx.  4),  and  that  he  was  with  St.  Paul 
at  the  close  of  his  third  missionary  journey  about  nine 
years  before  the  writing  of  this  letter  to  Timothy. 
Three  or  four  years  later  we  find  Tychicus  once  more 
with  St.  Paul  during  the  first  Roman  imprisonment; 
and  he  is  sent  with  Onesimus  as  the  bearer  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Colossians  (iv.  7)  and  to  the  Ephesians 
(vi.  21).  And  we  learn  from  the  sentence  before  us,  as 
well  as  from  Titus  iii.  12,  that  he  still  enjoys  the  confi- 
dence of  the  Apostle,  for  he  is  sent  on  missions  for  him 
to  Crete  and  to  Ephesus.  All  these  separate  notices  of 
him  hang  together  consistently  representing  him  as 
"  the  beloved  brother,"  and  also  as*a  "  faithful  minister 
and  fellow-servant  in  the  Lord/'  whom  St.  Paul  was 
accustomed  to  entrust  with  special  commissions.  If 
the  mission  to  Ephesus  mentioned  here  is  a  mere  copy 
of  the  other  missions,  would  not  a  forger  have  taken 
some  pains  to  ensure  that  the  similarity  between  his 
fiction  and  previous  facts  should  be  observed? 

'*  The  cloke  that  I  left  at  Troas  with  Carpus,  bring 
when  thou  comest>  and  the  books,  especially  the 
parchments."  Here  the  arguments  against  the  pro- 
bability of  forgery  reach  a  climax ;  and  this  verse 
should  be  remembered  side  by  side  with  '^  Be  no  longer 
a  drinker  of  water,  but  use  a  little  wine  for  thy 
stomach's  sake"  in  the  First  Epistle  (v.  23).  What 
writer  of  a  fictitious  letter  would  ever  have  dreamed  of 
inserting  either  passage  ?  To  an  unbiassed  mind  they 
go  a  long  way  towards  producing  the  impression  that 


4ti  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY. 

we  are  dealing  with  real  letters  and  not  with  inventions. 
And  this  argument  holds  good  equally  well,  whatever 
meaning  we  give  to  the  word  (cfeXoV?;)  which  is 
rendered  ^'cloke."  It  probably  means  a  cloke,  and  is 
a  Greek  form  of  the  Latin  penula.  It  appears  to  have 
been  a  circular  garment  without  sleeves,  but  with 
a  hole  in  the  middle  for  the  head.  Hence  some 
persons  have  made  the  astounding  suggestion  that  it 
was  a  eucharistic  vestment  analogous  to  a  chasuble, 
and  have  supposed  that  the  Apostle  is  here  asking,  not 
for  warm  clothing  "  before  winter,"  but  for  a  sacerdotal 
dress  for  ritualistic  purposes.  But  since  Chrysostom's 
day  there  has  been  a  more  credible  suggestion  that  the 
word  means  a  bag  or  case  for  books.  If  so,  would  the 
Apostle  have  mentioned  both  the  book-bag  and  the 
books,  and  would  he  have  put  the  bag  before  the 
books  ?  He  might  naturally  have  written,  *^  Bring  the 
book-bag," — of  course  with  the  books  in  it ;  or,  "  Bring 
the  books  and  the  bag  also."  But  it  seems  a  strange 
v/ay  of  putting  the  request  to  say,  "  The  book-bag  that  I 
left  at  Troas  with  Carpus,  bring  when  thou  comest ; 
the  books  also,  especially  the  parchments,"  as  if  the  bag 
were  the  chief  thing  that  he  thought  about.  It  seems 
better  to  abide  by  the  old  rendering  "cloke;"  and, 
if  this  is  correct,  then  it  fits  in  well  with  '•  Do  thy 
diligence  to  come  before  winter"  Yet  the  writer  in  no 
way  draws  our  attention  to  the  connexion  between  the 
need  of  the  thick  cloke  and  the  approach  of  winter: 
and  the  writer  of  a  real  letter  would  have  no  need 
to  do  so.  But  would  a  forger  have  left  the  connexion 
to  chance  ?  * 

*  The  striking  parallel  to  this  request  afforded  by  that  of  William 
Tyndale  is  pointed  out  in  Farrar's  St.  Paul,  ii.  p.  571.  Tyndale  writes 
from    his   prison   in   the   Castle   of  Vilvorden   to   ask,    "idque  per 


PERSONAL  DETAILS  GUARANTEE  GENUINENESS.  413 

Whether  Alexander  the  coppersmith  is  the  person 
of  that  name  who  was  put  forward  by  the  Jews  in  the 
riot  raised  by  Demetrius  (Acts  xix.  33),  is  not  more 
than  a  possibility.  The  name  Alexander  was  exceed- 
ingly common  ;  and  we  are  not  told  that  the  Jew  in 
the  riot  at  Ephesus  was  a  smith,  or  that  Alexander 
the  smith  was  a  Jew.  In  what  way  the  coppersmith 
"showed  much  ill-treatment"  to  the  Apostle,  we  are 
not  told.  As  St.  Paul  goes  on  immediately  afterwards 
to  speak  of  his  "  first  defence,"  it  seems  reasonable  to 
conjecture  that  Alexander  had  seriously  injured  the 
Apostle's  cause  in  some  way.  But  this  is  pure  con- 
jecture ;  and  the  ill-treatment  may  refer  to  general 
persecution  of  St.  Paul  and  opposition  to  his  teaching. 
On  the  whole  the  latter  hypothesis  appears  to  be 
safer. 

The  reading,  "  The  Lord  will  render  to  him " 
(aTToScoo-et),  is  shown  by  an  overwhelming  balance  of 
evidence  to  be  preferable  to  "  The  Lord  reward  him 
{d7roB(i)7j)  according  to  his  works."  There  is  no  male- 
diction. Just  as  in  ver,  8  the  Apostle  expresses  his 
conviction  that  the  Lord  will  render  (aTroBcoaei)  a  crown 
of  righteousness  to  all  those  who  love  His  appearing, 
so  here  he  expresses  a  conviction  that  He  will  render 
a  just  recompense  to  all  those  who  oppose  the  work  of 
His  kingdom.  What  follows  in  the  next  verse,  "  may 
it  not  be  laid  to  their  account,"  seems  to  show  that  the 
Apostle  is  in  no  cursing  mood.  He  writes  in  sorrow 
rather  than  in  anger.  It  is  necessary  to  put  Timothy 
on  his  guard  against  a  dangerous  person;  but  he 
leaves  the  requital  of  the  evil  deeds  to  God. 

''Salute  Prisca  and   Aquila."      A   forger   with   the 

Dominum  Jesum,"  for  warmer  clothing,  and  above  all  for  his  Hebrew 
Bible,  grammar,  and  dictionary. 


414  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

Apostle's  indisputable  writings  before  him,  would 
hardly  have  inserted  this ;  for  he  would  have  concluded 
from  Rom.  xvi.  3,  4,  that  these  two  well-known  helpers 
of  St.  Paul  were  in  Rome  at  this  very  time.  Aquila 
was  a  Jew  of  Pontus  who  had  migrated  from  Pontus 
to  Rome,  but  had  had  to  leave  the  capital  again  when 
Claudius  expelled  the  Jews  from  the  city  (Acts  xviii.  2). 
He  and  his  wife  Prisca  or  Priscilla  then  settled  in 
Corinth,  where  St.  Paul  took  up  his  abode  with  them, 
because  they  were  Jews  and  tent-makers,  like  himself. 
And  in  their  workshop  the  foundations  of  the  Corinth- 
ian Church  were  laid.  Thenceforward  they  became 
his  helpers  in  preaching  the  Gospel,  and  went  with  him 
to  Ephesus,  where  they  helped  forward  the  conversion 
of  the  eloquent  Alexandrian  Jew  ApoUos.  After  much 
service  to  the  Church  they  returned  once  more  to 
Rome,  and  were  there  when  St.  Paul  wrote  the  Epistle 
to  the  Romans.  Either  the  persecution  under  Nero, 
or  possibly  missionary  enterprise,  induced  them  once 
more  to  leave  Re  me  and  return  to  Asia.  The  Apostle 
naturally  puts  such  faithful  friends,  "  who  for  his  life 
laid  down  their  necks  "  (Rom.  xvi.  3),  in  the  very  first 
place  in  sending  his  personal  greetings ;  and  they  are 
equally  naturally  coupled  with  the  household  of  One- 
sipliorus,  who  had  done  similar  service  in  courageously 
visiting  St.  Paul  in  his  imprisonment  (ver.  16).  The 
double  mention  of  "  the  household  of  Onesiphorus  "  (not 
of  Onesiphorus  himselt)  has  been  commented  upon  in 
a  former  exposition  (see  No.  XXVIII.). 

Of  the  statements,  ^'Erastus  abode  at  Corinth:  but 
Trophimus  I  left  at  Miletus  sick,"  no  more  need  be 
said  than  to  point  out  how  lifelike  and  natural  they 
are  in  a  real  letter  from  one  friend  to  another  who 
knows  the  persons  mentioned;  how  unlikely  they  aie 


PERSONAL  DETAILS  GUARANTEE  GENUINENESS.  415 

to  have  occurred  to  a  writer  who  was  inventing  a  letter 
in  order  to  advocate  his  own  doctrinal  views.  That 
Trophimus  is  the  same  person  as  the  Ephesian,  who 
with  Tychicus  accompanied  St.  Paul  on  his  third 
missionary  journey  (Acts  xx.  4;  xxi.  29),  may  be 
safely  assumed.  Whether  Erastus  is  identical  with 
the  treasurer  of  Corinth  (Rom.  xvi.  23),  or  with  the 
Erastus  who  was  sent  by  Paul  with  Timothy  to 
Macedonia  (Acts  xix.  22),  must  remain  uncertain. 

"  Eubulus  saluteth  thee,  and  Pudcns,  and  Linus,  and 
Claudia."  With  this  group  of  names  our  accumulation 
of  arguments  for  the  genuineness  of  this  portion  of 
the  letter,  and  therefore  of  the  whole  letter,  and  there- 
fore of  all  three  Pastoral  Epistles,  comes  to  an  end. 
The  argument  is  a  cumulative  one,  and  this  last  item 
of  the  internal  evidence  is  by  no  means  the  least 
important  or  least  convincing.  About  Eubulus,  Pudens, 
and  Claudia  we  know  nothing  beyond  what  this 
passage  implies,  viz.,  that  they  were  members  of  the 
Christian  Church  in  Rome ;  for  the  very  bare  possi- 
bility that  Pudens  and  Claudia  may  be  the  persons  of 
that  name  who  are  mentioned  by  Martial,  is  not  worth 
more  than  a  passing  reference.  But  Linus  is  a  person 
about  whom  something  is  known.  It  is  unlikely  that 
in  the  Apostolic  age  there  were  two  Christians  of  this 
name  in  the  Roman  Church  ;  and  therefore  we  may 
safely  conclude  that  the  Linus  who  here  sends  greeting 
is  identical  with  the  Linus,  who,  according  to  very 
early  testimony  preserved  by  Irenaeus  (Hcer.,  IIL  iii. 
3),  was  first  among  the  earliest  bishops  of  the  Church 
of  Rome.  Irenaeus  himself  expressly  identifies  the 
first  Bishop  of  Rome  with  the  Linus  mentioned  in  the 
Epistles  to  Timothy,  and  that  in  a  passage  in  which 
(thanks   to   Eusebius)  we  have  the  original  Greek   of 


4i6  fHE  SECOND  kPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY, 

Irenaeus  as  well  as  the  Latin  translation.  From  his 
time  (c.  A.D.  1 80)  to  the  present  day,  Linus,  Anencletus 
or  Anacletus  or  Cletus  (all  three  forms  of  the  name 
are  used),  and  Clement  have  been  commemorated  as 
the  three  first  Bishops  of  Rome.  They  must  all  of 
them  have  been  contemporaries  of  the  Apostle.  Of 
these  three  far  the  most  famous  was  Clement ;  and  a 
writer  at  the  end  of  the  first  century,  or  beginning  ot 
the  second,  inventing  a  letter  for  St.  Paul,  would  be 
much  more  likely  to  put  Clement  into  it  than  Linus. 
Again,  such  a  writer  would  know  that  Linus,  after  the 
Apostle's  death,  became  the  presiding  presbyter  of  the 
Church  of  Rome,  and  would  place  him  before  Eubulus 
and  Pudens.  But  here  Linus  is  placed  after  the  other 
two.  The  obvious  inference  is,  that,  at  the  time  when 
this  letter  was  written,  Linus  was  not  yet  in  any 
position  of  authority.  Like  the  other  persons  here 
named,  he  was  a  leading  member  of  the  Church  in 
Rome,  otherwise  he  would  hardly  have  been  mentioned 
at  all ;  but  he  has  not  yet  been  promoted  to  the  chief 
place,  otherwise  he  would  at  least  have  been  mentioned 
first,  and  probably  with  some  epithet  or  title.  Once 
more  one  asks,  what  writer  of  fiction  would  have 
thought  of  these  niceties?  And  what  writer  who 
thought  of  them,  and  elaborated  them  thus  skilfully, 
would  have  abstained  from  all  attempt  to  prevent  their 
being  overlooked  and  unappreciated  ? 

The  result  of  this  investigation  is  greatly  to  increase 
our  confidence  in  the  genuineness  of  this  letter  and 
of  all  three  Pastoral  Epistles.  We  began  by  treating 
them  as  veritable  writings  of  the  great  Apostle,  and 
a  closer  acquaintance  with  them  has  justified  this 
treatment.  Doubts  may  be  raised  about  everything; 
but  reasonable  doubts  have  their  limits.     To  dispute 


PERBONAL  DETAILS  GVAkA^TEE  GENUINENESS.  ^\^ 

the  authenticity  of  the  Epistles  to  the  Corinthians, 
Romans,  and  Galatians  is  now  considered  to  be  a  sure 
proof  that  the  doubter  cannot  estimate  evidence;  and 
we  may  look  forward  to  the  time  when  the  Second 
Epistle  to  Timothy  will  be  ranked  with  those  four  great 
Epistles  as  indisputable.  Meanwhile  let  no  student 
of  this  letter  doubt  that  in  it  he  is  reading  the  touching 
words  in  which  the  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles  gave  his 
last  charge  to  his  beloved  disciple,  and  through  him 
to  the  Christian  Church. 


27 


CHAPTER   XXXVII. 

THE  APOSTLE  FORSAKEN  BY  MEN  BUT  STRENGTH- 
ENED BY  THE  LORD.— THE  MISSION  TO  THE  GEN- 
TILES COMPLETED.— THE  ^URE  HOPE,  AND  THE 
FINAL  HYMN  OF  PRAISE. 

"  At  my  first  defence  no  man  took  my  part,  but  all  forsook  me : 
may  it  not  be  laid  to  their  account.  But  the  Lord  stood  by  me  and 
strengthened  me ;  that  through  me  the  message  might  be  fully 
proclaimed,  and  that  all  the  Gentiles  might  hear :  and  I  was  delivered 
out  of  the  mouth  of  the  lion.  The  Lord  will  deliver  me  from  evil 
work,  and  will  save  me  unto  His  heavenly  kingdom  :  to  whom  be  the 
glory  for  ever  and  ever.     Amen." — 2  Tiia.  iv.  16 — 18. 

THERE  is  a  general  agreement  at  the  present  time 
that  Eusebius  is  in  error,  when,  in  a  well-known 
passage  in  his  Ecclesiastical  History  (II.  xxii.  2 — 7), 
he  refers  this  "  first  defence "  and  the  "  deliverance 
out  of  the  lion's  mouth  "  to  the  first  Roman  imprison- 
ment and  the  release  which  put  an  end  to  it,  probably 
A.D.  62,.  The  deliverance  does  not  mean  release  from 
prison  following  upon  acquittal,  but  temporary  rescue 
from  imminent  danger.  Eusebius  makes  a  second 
mistake  in  this  chapter  which  is  the  result  of  the  first 
error ;  but  an  avoidance  of  the  second  would  have 
preserved  him  from  the  first.  He  says  that  the  Apostle 
shows  in  the  Second  Epistle  to  Timothy  that  only  Luke 
was  with  him  when  he  wrote,  but  at  his  former  defence 
not  even  he.  Now  during  the  first  Roman  imprison- 
ment St.  Paul  was  not  alone,  and  one  of  the  persons 


iv.  16.18.]  SURE  HOPE  AND  FINAL  HYMN  OF  PRAISE.  4»9 

who  was  with  him  was  Timothy  himself,  as  we  see 
from  the  opening  of  the  letter  to  the  Philippians.  It 
is,  therefore,  highly  improbable  that  the  Apostle  would 
think  it  worth  while  to  tell  Timothy  what  took  place 
at  the  trial  which  ended  the  first  imprisonment,  seeing 
that  Timothy  was  then  in  Rome.  And  even  if  Timothy 
had  left  Rome  before  the  trial  came  on,  which  is  not 
very  likely,  he  would  long  since  have  heard  what  took 
place,  both  from  others  and  from  the  Apostle  himself. 
It  is  obvious  that  in  the  present  passage  St.  Paul  is 
giving  his  disciple  information  respecting  something 
which  has  recently  taken  place,  of  which  Timothy  is 
not  likely  to  have  heard. 

The  value  of  the  witness  of  Eusebius  is  not,  how- 
ever, seriously  diminished  by  this  twofold  mistake. 
It  is  clear  that  he  was  fully  convinced  that  there  were 
two  Roman  imprisonments  ;  one  early  in  Nero's  reign, 
when  the  Emperor  was  more  disposed  to  be  merciful, 
and  one  later;  and  that  he  was  convinced  of  this  on 
independent  grounds,  and  not  because  he  considered 
that  the  genuineness  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  would  be 
untenable  without  the  hypothesis  of  a  second  imprison- 
ment. 

Another  confirmation  of  the  view  of  Eusebius  is 
found  in  the  statement  respecting  Trophimus,  that  Paul 
had  left  him  sick  at  Miletus.  It  is  impossible  to  place 
the  Apostle  at  Miletus  with  Trophimus  prior  to  the  first 
imprisonment.  Consequently  some  who  deny  the  second 
imprisonment,  and  yet  maintain  the  genuineness  of  this 
letter,  resort  to  the  desperate  method  of  making  the 
verb  to  be  third  person  plural  instead  of  first  person 
singular  {airkXeiirov  or  aTzeKi-Kov),  and  translating 
"  Trophimus  they  left  at  Miletus  sick." 

*^  At  my  first  defence  no  man  took  my  part,  but  all 


420  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

forsook  me."  He  had  no  patronus,  no  advocatiiSy  no 
cUentela.  Among  all  the  Christians  in  Rome  there  was 
not  one  who  would  stand  at  his  side  in  court  either 
to  speak  on  his  behalf,  or  to  advise  him  in  the  conduct 
of  his  case,  or  to  support  him  by  a  demonstration  of 
sympathy.  The  expression  for  "no  one  took  my  part" 
(pvhek  iioi  irape^evero)  literally  means  "no  one  came 
to  my  side/'  or  "  became  present  on  my  behalf."  The 
verb  is  specially  frequent  in  the  writings  of  St.  Luke. 
And  the  word  which  is  rendered  "forsook"  (iyKaTeXiTrov) 
is  still  more  graphic.  It  signifies  "  leaving  a  person  m 
a  position,"  and  especially  in  a  bad  position  ;  leaving 
him  in  straits.  It  is  almost  the  exact  counterpart  of 
our  colloquial  phrase  *'  to  leave  in  the  lurch."  St.  Paul 
uses  it  elsewhere  of  those  who  with  him  are  "  pursued, 
but  not  forsaken  "  (2  Cor.  iv.  9).  And  both  St.  Mark 
and  St.  Luke,  following  the  LXX.,  use  it  in  translating 
Christ's  cry  upon  the  cross  :  "Why  hast  thou  forsaken 
Me  ?  "  Hence  it  signifies  not  merely  desertion  (jcara- 
Xeiireiv),  but  desertion  at  a  time  when  help  and  support 
are  needed. 

What  is  the  meaning  of  the  "  all"  ?  "^//forsook  me." 
Does  it  include  Luke,  whom  he  has  just  mentioned  as 
being  the  only  person  with  him  ?  And,  if  so,  is  it 
meant  as  an  indirect  reproach  ?  Some  would  have  it 
that  we  have  here  an  indication  of  the  spurious  character 
of  the  letter.  The  forger  is  unable  consistently  to 
maintain  the  part  which  he  has  assumed.  In  writing 
"  all  forsook  me "  he  has  already  forgotten  what  he 
has  just  written  about  Luke :  and  he  forgets  both 
statements  when  a  few  lines  further  on  he  represents 
Eubulus,  Pudens,  Linus,  Claudia,  and  others  as  sending 
greetings. 

But,  like  so  many  of  these  objections,  this  criticism 


iv.  16-18.]  SURE  HOPE  AND  FINAL  HYMN  OF  PRAISE.  42I 

turns  out,  when  reasonably  examined,  to  be  an  argu- 
ment for  the  genuineness  of  the  letter.  These  apparent 
inconsistencies  are  just  the  things  which  a  forger  could 
and  would  have  avoided.  Even  a  very  blundering 
forger  would  have  avoided  three  glaring  contradictions 
in  about  thirty  lines  :  and  they  are  glaring  contradic- 
tions, if  they  are  interpreted  as  they  must  be  interpreted 
for  the  purposes  of  this  criticism.  "Only  Luke  is 
with  me."  "  Every  one  has  forsaken  me."  "  All  the 
brethren  salute  thee."  Any  one  of  these  statements, 
if  forced  to  apply  to  the  same  set  of  circumstances, 
contradicts  the  other  two.  But  then  this  meaning  is 
forced  upon  them,  and  is  not  their  natural  meaning : 
and  these  are  just  the  apparent  inconsistencies  which 
the  writer  of  a  real  letter  takes  no  pains  to  avoid, 
because  there  is  not  the  smallest  danger  of  his  being 
misunderstood. 

"  All  forsook  me "  is  exactly  a  parallel  to  "  all  that 
are  in  Asia  turned  away  from  me"  (see  pp.  321,  322.) 
The  "all"  in  both  cases  means  "all  who  might  have 
been  expected  to  help."  It  refers  to  those  who  could 
have  been  of  service,  who  in  many  cases  had  been 
asked  to  render  service,  by  being  witnesses  in  Paul's 
favour  and  the  like,  and  who  abstained  from  doing 
anything  for  him.  The  Apostle's  "first  defence" 
probably  took  place  some  weeks,  or  even  months, 
before  the  writing  of  this  letter.  From  our  knowledge 
of  the  delays  which  often  took  place  in  Roman  legal 
proceedings,  there  would  be  nothing  surprising  if  a 
whole  year  had  elapsed  since  the  first  opening  of  the 
case.  It  is  quite  possible,  therefore,  that  at  the  time 
when  it  began  St.  Luke  was  not  yet  in  Rome,  and 
consequently  had  no  opportunity  of  aiding  his  friend. 
And  it  is  also  possible  that  he  was  not  in  a  position  to 


422  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  TO  TIMOTHY, 

render  any  assistance,  however  anxious  he  may  have 
been  to  do  so.  There  is  no  reason  whatever  for 
supposing  that  the  Apostle  includes  him  among  those 
for  whom  he  prays  that  God  will  forgive  them  their 
desertion  of  him,  even  as  he  himself  forgives  it. 

Nor  is  there  any  contradiction  between  "  Only  Luke 
is  with  me,"  and  the  salutations  sent  by  Eubulus  and 
others.  There  were  various  members  of  the  Church 
in  Rome  who  occasionally  visited  St.  Paul  in  his 
imprisonment,  or  at  least  kept  up  a  certain  amount 
of  communication  with  him.  But  Luke  was  the  only 
outsider  who  was  with  him,  the  only  one  who  had  come 
to  him  from  a  distance  and  been  both  able  and  willing 
to  remain  with  him.  Others  both  in  Rome  and  from 
other  Churches  had  paid  visits  to  the  prisoner;  but 
they  had  been  unable  or  unwilling  to  stay  with  him. 
Luke  was  the  only  person  who  had  done  that.  There- 
fore the  fact  that  various  Roman  Christians  were  ready 
to  send  greetings  to  Timothy  is  in  no  way  inconsistent 
with  the  special  commendation  bestowed  upon  St.  Luke 
for  being  his  friend's  sole  companion  in  prison. 

For  the  cowardly  or  unkind  abstention  of  the  rest 
the  Apostle  has  no  stronger  word  of  condemnation  than 
**  may  it  not  be  laid  to  their  account."  No  one  knew 
better  than  himself  how  weak-hearted  many  of  these 
disciples  were,  and  how  great  were  the  dangers  of  his 
own  position  and  of  all  those  who  ventured  to  associate 
themselves  with  him.  It  was  otherwise  in  his  first 
imprisonment.  Then  Nero  was  not  quite  the  monster 
that  he  had  since  become.  At  that  time  the  burning 
of  Rome  had  not  yet  taken  place,  nor  had  the  cruel 
outcry  against  the  Christians,  of  which  the  conflagra- 
tion was  made  the  occasion,  as  yet  been  raised.  It  was 
quite   otherwise   now.     To  be  known   as  a  Christian 


iv.  16-18.]  SURE  HOPE  AND  FINAL  HYMN  OF  PRAISE.  423 


might  be  dangerous  ;  and  to  avow  oneself  as  the 
associate  of  so  notorious  a  leader  as  Paul  could  not 
fail  to  be  so.  Therefore,  ''  May  it  not  be  laid  to  their 
account "  (/x^  avroh  Xoyiadelrj).  This  is  the  very  spirit 
which  the  Apostle  himself  years  before  had  declared  to 
be  a  characteristic  of  Christian  charity  ;  "  it  taketh  not 
account  of  evil "  {pv  Xoyi^erau  to  Kaicbv)  :  and  of  God 
Himself,  Who  in  dealing  with  mankind,  "  lays  not  to 
their  account  their  trespasses "  (//<?;  'XoyiXofievo^  avroh 
ra  TTapairrwixaTa  avToiiv)* 

"  But,"  in  contrast  to  these  timid  friends,  "  the  Lord 
stood  by  me  and  strengthened  me."  Christ  did  not 
desert  His  faithful  servant  in  the  hour  of  need,  but 
gave  him  courage  and  strength  to  speak  out  bravely 
before  the  court  all  that  it  was  right  that  he  should  say. 
The  contrast  which  the  Apostle  here  makes  between 
the  many  who  forsook  him  and  the  One  who  stood  by 
him  reminds  us  of  a  similar  contrast  made  by  the  Lord 
Himself.  *'  Behold,  the  hour  cometh,  yea  is  com.e,  that 
ye  shall  be  scattered,  every  man  to  his  own,  and  shall 
leave  Me  alone  :  and  yet  I  am  not  alone,  because  the 
Father  is  with  Me"  (John  xvi.  32).  In  this  respect 
also  the  saying  remains  true  *^A  servant  is  not  greater 
than  his  lord  "  (John  xv.  20) ;  and  Apostles  must  expect 
no  better  treatment  than  their  Master  received.  If 
they  are  deserted  by  their  disciples  and  friends  in  the 
hour  of  danger,  so  also  was  He.  But  in  each  case 
those  who  are  deserted  are  not  alone,  because,  although 
human  help  fails,  Divine  support  is  always  present. 

"The  Lord"  in  this  passage,  both  here  and  a  few 
lines  further  on,  means  Christ  rather  than  the  Father. 
This  is  in  accordance  with  St.  Paul's  usage.     *'  Lord  " 


*  I  Cor.  xiii.  5 ;  2  Cor.  v.  19. 


424  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY. 

here  has  the  article  (o  Kvpio^)  :  and  when  that  is  the 
case  it  commonly  means  Jesus  Christ  (comp.  ii.  7,  14, 
22;  iii.  II  ;  iv.  14,  22;  I  Tim.  i.  2,  12,  14;  vi.  3,  14; 
I  Cor.  iv.  5  ;  vi.  13  ;  vii.  10,  12,  34;  etc.,  etc.  In  Titus 
the  word  does  not  occur).  Where  "  Lord "  has  no 
article  in  the  Greek  (/cvpto?)  St.  Paul  usually  means 
God  and  not  Christ.  Some  would  assert  that,  except- 
ing where  he  quotes  from  the  Old  Testament  {e.g., 
I  Cor.  X.  26),  this  usage  is  invariable  ;  but  that  is  pro- 
bably too  sweeping  an  assertion.  Nevertheless,  there 
is  no  reason  for  doubting  that  in  this  passage  "  the 
Lord  "  means  Jesus  Christ.  We  may  compare  our 
own  usage,  according  to  which  ''our  Lord"  almost 
invariably  means  Christ,  whereas  "the  Lord"  more 
commonly  means  God  the  Father. 

The  word  for  "  strengthen "  (ivEuvafwvv)  means 
literally  "  to  infuse  power  into  "  a  person.  It  is  one  of 
which  the  Apostle  is  rather  fond  ;  and  outside  his  writings 
it  occurs  in  the  New  Testament  only  in  the  Acts  and 
in  Hebrews,  once  in  each  (Rom.  iv.  20;  Eph.  vi.  10; 
Phil.  iv.  13  ;  I  Tim.  i.  12  ;  2  Tim.  ii.  i).  It  is  worth  while 
to  compare  the  passage  in  which  he  speaks  to  Timothy 
of  Christ  having  given  him  power  to  turn  to  Him  and 
become  His  servant;  and  still  more  the  passage  in 
which,  during  his  first  Roman  imprisonment,  he  tells 
the  Philippians  "  I  can  do  all  things  in  Him  that 
strengtheneth  me."  The  same  thing  was  true  in  the 
second  imprisonment. 

The  special  purpose  for  which  Christ  stood  by  His 
Apostle  and  put  strength  and  power  into  him  is  stated. 
"That  through  me  the  message  might  be  fully  pro- 
claimed, and  that  all  the  Gentiles  might  hear."  Those 
who  follow  Eusebius  in  the  mistake  of  supposing  that 
the  "  first  defence "  refers  to  the  trial  which  ended  in 


iv.  16-18.]  SURE  HOPE  AND  FINAL  HYMN  OF  PRAISE.  425 

St.  Paul's  release  after  the  first  imprisonment,  under- 
stand this  proclamation  of  the  message  to  the  Gentiles 
as  referring  to  the  missionary  work  which  St.  Paul 
was  enabled  to  do  during  the  few  years  of  interval 
(c.  A.D.  63—66)  before  he  was  again  arrested.  But  if  the 
proclamation  of  the  message  took  place  in  consequence 
of  the  Apostle's  release,  then  it  would  have  been  placed 
after,  and  not  before,  the  mention  of  deliverance  out 
of  the  mouth  of  the  lion.  It  is  not  said  that  he  was 
delivered  in  order  that  through  him  the  message  might 
be  proclaimed,  but  that  he  was  strengthened  in  order 
that  it  might  be  proclaimed.  And  the  special  strengthen- 
ing by  Christ  took  place  in  reference  to  the  first  hearing 
of  the  case  in  court,  when  all  human  friends  forsook 
him,  while  Christ  stood  by  him.  It  was  in  court, 
therefore,  that  the  proclamation  of  the  message  was 
made,  and  that  through  the  instrumentality  of  the 
Apostle  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  reached  its  culmina- 
tion (to  Krjpv^ixa  7r\r)po(f)opr)6fj).  This  was  the  climax; 
— that  in  the  metropolis  of  the  world,  in  open  court, 
before  the  imperial  tribunal,  the  Gospel  proclamation 
should  be  made  with  all  solemnity  and  power.  It  is 
quite  possible  that  this  event,  which  the  Apostle  of  the 
Gentiles  regards  as  the  completing  act  of  his  own 
mission  and  ministry,  took  place  in  the  forum  itself. 
Here  Tiberius  had  caused  a  tribunal  to  be  erected  for 
causes  which  he  had  to  hear  as  Emperor.  But  Claudius 
sometimes  heard  such  cases  elsewhere  ;  and  his  suc- 
cessors probably  followed  his  example.  So  that  in  the 
reign  of  Nero  we  cannot  be  certain  that  such  a  case  as 
St.  Paul's  would  be  heard  in  the  forum.  But  at  any 
rate  it  would  be  held  in  a  court  to  which  the  public  had 
access ;  and  the  Roman  public  at  this  time  was  the 
most  representative  in  the  world.     The  Apostle  is  fully 


426  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TO   TIMOTHY, 

justified,  therefore,  in  the  language  which  he  uses. 
This  opportunity  and  power  were  granted  "in  order 
that  through  me  the  message  might  be  fully  proclaimed, 
and  that  all  the  Gentiles  might  hear^  In  that  represen- 
tative city  and  before  that  representative  audience  he 
preached  Christ ;  and  through  those  who  were  present 
and  heard  him  the  fact  would  be  made  known  through- 
out the  civilized  world  that  in  the  imperial  city  and 
before  the  imperial  bench  the  Apostle  of  Christ  had 
proclaimed  the  coming  of  His  Kingdom. 

And  the  result  of  it  was  that  he  was  "  delivered  out 
of  the  mouth  of  the  lion."  This  was  a  second  conse- 
quence of  the  Lord's  standing  by  him  and  strengthening 
him.  He  was  enabled  to  speak  with  such  effect,  that 
the  sentence  of  condemnation,  which  had  been  feared, 
was  for  the  present  averted.  He  was  neither  acquitted 
nor  convicted  ;  but  the  court,  being  unable  to  arrive  at 
a  satisfactory  decision,  granted  an  extension  of  time 
(ampliatio) ;  that  is  an  adjournment.  In  technical 
phraseology  the  actio  prima  ended  in  a  verdict  of  non 
liquet,  and  an  actio  secunda  became  necessary ;  and  as 
this  second  trial  might  have  a  similar  result,  the  amount 
of  delay  that  was  possible  was  almost  boundless. 

To  ask  who  is  meant  by  the  lion  is  a  futile  question. 
Whom  did  the  Psalmist  mean  by  the  lion,  when  he 
prayed  "Save  me  from  the  lion's  mouth"?  (Ps.  xxii.  21.) 
He  meant  no  one  by  the  lion ;  but  by  the  lion's  mouth 
he  meant  some  great  and  imminent  danger.  And  that 
is  what  we  must  understand  here.  All  kinds  of  gratuit- 
ous conjectures  have  been  made  by  those  who  have 
insisted  on  identifying  the  lion ; — the  lion  of  the 
amphitheatre,  to  whom  the  Apostle  might  have  been 
thrown,  had  he  been  condemned  ;  the  Emperor  Nero, 
or,   as  he  was  possibly  in   Greece   at   this   time,   his 


iv.  16-18.]  SURE  HOPE  AND  FINAL  HYMN  OF  PRAISE.  427 

prefect  and  representative  Helius  ;  or,  the  chief  accuser ; 
or  again,  Satan,  whom  St.  Peter  describes  as  ^'  a  roar- 
ing lion."  All  these  are  answers  to  a  question  which 
does  not  arise  out  of  the  text.  The  question  is  not, 
*'  Who  is  the  lion  ? "  but,  *'  What  is  the  meaning  of 
the  lion's  mouth?"  And  the  answer  to  that  is,  ''a 
terrible  danger,"  and  especially  "  peril  of  death." 

The  goodness  of  the  Lord  does  not  end  with  this 
welcome,  but  temporary  deliverance.  *^The  Lord  will 
deliver  me  from  every  evil  work,  and  will  save  me  unto 
His  heavenly  kingdom."  Paul's  enemies  are  not  likely 
to  be  idle  during  the  extension  of  time  granted  by  the 
court.  They  will  do  their  utmost  to  secure  a  sentence 
of  condemnation  at  the  second  hearing  of  the  case,  and 
thus  get  the  man  whom  they  detest  removed  from  the 
earth.  Whether  they  will  succeed  in  this  or  not,  the 
Apostle  does  not  know.  But  one  thing  he  knows; — 
that  whatever  is  really  evil  in  their  works  against  him 
will  be  powerless  to  harm  him.  The  Lord  will  turn 
their  evil  into  good.  They  may  succeed  in  compassing 
his  death.  But,  even  if  they  do  so,  the  Lord  will  make 
their  work  of  death  a  work  of  salvation ;  and  by  the 
severing  of  the  thread  which  still  binds  Paul  to  this  life 
*'  wuU  save  him  unto,"  that  is,  will  translate  him  safe 
into,  '*  His  heavenly  kingdom." 

It  is  utterly  improbable  that  by  "  every  evil  work/' 
St.  Paul  means  any  weakness  or  sin  into  which  he 
himself  might  be  betrayed  through  want  of  courage  and 
steadfastness.  Even  if  the  lion's  mouth  could  mean 
Satan,  this  would  not  be  probable;  for  it  would  be 
Satan's  attacks  from  without,  by  means  of  opposition 
and  persecution,  and  not  his  attempts  from  within  by 
means  of  grievous  temptations,  that  would  be  meant. 
What  is  said  above  about  Alexander  the  coppersmith 


428  THE  B^CONb  kPlSTLE  TO  TIMOTHY, 

shows  what  kind  of  ''evil"  and  what  kind  of  "works" 
is  intended  in  "  every  evil  work."  The  expression  evi- 
dently refers  to  the  machinations  of  Paul's  enemies. 

It  is  also  highly  improbable  that  ''  will  save  me  unto 
His  heavenly  kingdom"  means  "will  keep  me  alive 
until  He  returns  in  glory."  There  was  a  time  when 
the  Apostle  expected,  like  most  other  Christians  of  that 
day,  to  live  to  behold  the  second  coming  of  Christ. 
But  what  we  have  already  seen  in  this  Epistle  shows 
that  in  St.  Paul's  mind  that  expectation  is  extinct.  He 
no  longer  thinks  that  he  will  be  one  of  those  "  that 
are  alive,  that  are  left  unto  the  coming  of  the  Lord  " 
(l  Thess.  iv.  15,  17) ;  that  he  will  be  among  the  living, 
who  "shall  be  changed,"  rather  than  among  the  dead, 
who  "  shall  be  raised "  at  the  sounding  of  the  last 
trump  (i  Cor.  xv.  53).  He  does  not  repeat,  what 
seems  almost  to  have  been  a  familiar  watchword  among 
the  Christians  of  that  day, — "  Maran  atha  " ;  "  the 
Lord  is  at  hand"  (l  Cor.  xvi.  22;  Phil.  iv.  5).  On 
the  contrary,  it  is  his  own  hour  that  is  at  hand  :  "  I 
am  already  being  ofliered,  and  the  time  of  my  departure 
is  come."  He  is  fully  persuaded  now  that  he  will  not 
live  to  see  Christ's  return  in  glory ;  and  he  does  not 
expect  that  return  to  come  speedily ;  for,  as  we  have 
seen,  one  of  his  chief  anxieties  is  that  there  should  be 
a  permanently  organized  ministry  in  the  Churches,  and 
that  provision  should  be  made  for  handing  on  the  faith 
intact  from  generation  to  generation  (Tit.  i.  5  ;  2  Tim. 
ii.  2).  There  can  be  little  doubt,  therefore,  that  when 
the  Apostle  expresses  a  conviction  that  the  Lord  will 
save  him  unto  His  heavenly  kingdom,  he  is  not  expect- 
ing to  reach  that  kingdom  without  first  passing  through 
the  gate  of  death.  What  he  is  sure  of  is  this, — that 
the  evil  works  of  his  adversaries  will  never  be  allowed 


iv.  16-18.]  St/RE  HOPM  AJ^D  PINAL  HYMN  OP  PRAISM.  4^9 

to  prevent  him  from  reaching  that  blessed  resting  place. 
Christ's  kingdom  is  twofold;  He  has  a  kingdom  on 
earth  and  a  kingdom  in  heaven.  The  saints  who  are 
in  the  kingdom  on  earth  are  still  exposed  to  many  kinds 
of  evil  works;  and  the  Apostle  is  persuaded  that  in 
his  case  such  works  will  be  overruled  by  the  Lord  to 
further  his  progress  from  the  earthly  to  the  heavenly 
kingdom. 

"  To  whom  be  the  glory  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen." 
If  what  was  said  above  about  "  the  Lord  "  is  correct, 
then  here  we  have  a  doxology  which  manifestly  is 
addressed  to  Christ.  It  is  possible  that  in  Rom.  ix.  5 
and  xvi.  27  we  have  other  examples,  as  also  in  Heb. 
xiii.  21  ;  but  in  all  these  three  cases  the  construction  is 
open  to  question.  Here,  however,  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  "  the  glory  for  ever  and  ever"  is  ascribed  to  the 
Lord  Who  stood  by  Paul  at  his  trial  and  will  deliver 
him .  from  all  evil  works  hereafter ;  and  the  Lord  is 
Jesus  Christ.  As  Chrysostom  pointedly  remarks  with- 
out further  comment :  "  Lo,  here  is  a  doxology  to  the 
Son."  And  it  is  word  for  word  the  same  as  that  which 
in  Gal.  i.  5  is  addressed  to  the  Father. 

With  these  words  of  praise  on  his  lips  we  take  our 
leave  of  the  Apostle.  He  is  a  wearied  worker,  a  forlorn 
and  all  but  deserted  teacher,  a  despised  and  all  but 
condemned  prisoner ;  but  he  knows  that  he  has  made 
no  mistake.  The  Master,  Who  seems  to  have  requited 
His  servant  so  ill,  is  a  royal  Master,  Who  has  royal 
gifts  in  store.  He  has  never  failed  His  servant  in  this 
life,  in  which  His  presence,  though  but  dimly  reflected, 
has  always  brightened  suifering ;  and  He  will  not  fail 
in  His  promises  respecting  the  life  which  is  to  come. 
The  Apostle  has  had  to  sustain  him,  not  merely  Divine 
truth   wherewith    to   enlighten   his   soul,    and   Divine 


430  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE   TG   TIMOTHY, 

rules,  wherewith  to  direct  his  conduct ;  he  has  had  also 
a  Divine  Person,  wherewith  to  share  his  life.  He  has 
kept  the  faith  in  the  Divine  truth ;  he  has  finished  his 
course  according  to  the  Divine  rules ;  yet  these  things 
he  has  done,  not  in  his  own  strength,  but  in  Christ 
Who  lives  in  him.  It  is  this  gracious  indwelling  which 
made  the  victory  that  has  been  won  possible  ;  and  it 
is  this  which  gives  it  its  value.  The  faith  which  has 
been  kept  is  faith  in  Him  Who  is  the  Truth.  The 
course  which  has  been  finished  is  according  to  Him 
Who  is  the  Way.  And  the  life  which  has  been  shared 
has  been  united  with  Him  Who  is  the  Life.  That 
union  will  never  end.  It  began  here ;  and  it  will  be 
continued  throughout  eternity  in  "  the  life  which  is 
life  indeed."  And  therefore,  with  a  heart  full  of  thank- 
fulness to  the  Master  Who  has  shared  his  sufferings 
and  will  share  his  bliss,  he  leaves  us  as  his  last  address 
to  Christ,  *'To  Him  be  the  glory  for  ever  and  ever. 
Amen.'* 


INDEX. 


Abecedarians,  7a 

Acts  of  tjie  Apostles  not  written  by 
Titus,  207,  nor  by  St.  Paul,  360- 
362. 

Adornment,  The  nature  of,  251,  252. 

Alexander,  75,  76,  373,  413. 

Ambrose,  230. 

Anacletus,  416. 

Ananias  and  Sapphira,  73,  75, 

Anarchy  in  the  Church,  73,  271. 

Angels,  138. 

Antinomian  doctrine,  44,   49,  298, 

299. 
Apocalypse,  48,  68. 
Apollos,  203,  208,  414. 
Apostles,  69,  70. 
Apostolic   Constitutions,   126,   156, 

232. 
Appuleius,  379. 
Aquila,  413,  414. 
Aratus,  225. 
Aristotle,  240. 
Army,  Roman,  345,  346. 
Artemis,  Temple  of,  84,  198. 
Article,  The  Greek,  89,  189,  392. 
Asceticism,  44,  142,  143. 
Athenagoras,  125, 
Athleticism,  144. 
Aurelius'  M.,  89,  257, 
Augustui'^  229,  373. 


Authenticity  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles, 
4-16,  33,  52,  55,  163,  169,  294, 
295,  312,  322,  404,  406-417,  421. 

Authorit}^,  Divine   origin   of,  273- 

275. 
Avarice,  Dangers  of,  196-198. 

Baptism,  284-293. 

Basilides,  8,  42. 

Bauer,  8,  10,  12,  33. 

Blandina,  257. 

Bodily  exercise  profitable,  143-145. 

Bretschneider,  125. 

Butler's  Durham  Charge,  368, 

Carpus,  ii,  411, 

Cathari,  126. 

Celsus,  229,  253. 

Cellini,  50. 

Certainty,  Nature  of  historical,  105. 

Children,  Care  of,  256. 

Chrysostom,  34,  56,   95,   lOI,  249, 

349>  369,  382,  397,  429- 
Circumcision  of  Timothy,  22. 
Claudia,  415. 
Claudius,  414,  425. 
Cleanthes,  225. 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  6,  97i  100^ 

228,  339,  373 


45^ 


JtNDMX. 


Clement  of  Rome,  5,  14,  97,  no, 

Ecstasy,  241. 

416. 

Elders  or  presbyters,  67,  112,  I15, 

Clergy   and    laity    from    the   first 

118,  165,213,217. 

distinct,  109. 

Elymas,  75. 

Cloke,  412. 

Emotion  in  religion,  244-247. 

Collection   for  Jewish   Christians, 

Ephesus,  Timothy  at,  25,  84,  198, 

205. 

265,  320,  323. 

Conscientious  disobedience,  278. 

Epimenides,  224,  225. 

Contentment,  192-196. 

Epiphanies  of  Christ,  260,  269. 

Continuity  of  doctrine,  336-340. 

Episcopacy,  107,  112,  II4,  221. 

Controversial  spirit,  367. 

Erastus,  414,  415. 

Controversial  violence,  280. 

Evans,  T.  S.,  287. 

Corinth,    Case    of   incest    at,    73, 

Eunice,  21,  388. 

265. 

Eubulus,  415. 

Corinth,  Timothy  at,  23,  24,  29. 

Eusebius,   6,   14,   26,  37,  257,  371, 

Corinth,  Titus  at,  204-206. 

379,415,418,419. 

Cosin,  Bishop,  328. 

Ewald,  9,  407. 

Credner,  8. 

Excommunication,  74,  303. 

Crete,    The   Church    in,    212-215, 

Extempore  prayer,  96. 

271. 
Cynicism,  Evils  of,  29-31, 

Failure,  Apparent,  of  the  Gospel, 

Cyril  of  Jerusalem,  341. 

402. 

Faith,  Test  of,  290. 

Davies,  T.  LI.,  301. 

Farrar,  F.  W.,  412. 

Deaconesses,  155,  158. 

Flood,  The,  a  type  of  baptism,  289. 

Dead,  Prayers  for  the,  325-33a 

Free  will,  40,  41,  57- 

Delivering  to  Satan,  74. 

Freedom  of  the  Gospel,  362,  363. 

Demas,  409,  410. 

Friendship  of  Paul  and  Timothy, 

Devil,  Personality  of  the,  77-80. 

26-30. 

Diogenes  Laertius,  296. 

Discipline  necessary  to  the  Church, 

Genealogies,  34,  35. 

72,  73- 

Genuineness  of  the  Pastoral  Epis- 

Divinity of  Christ,  268,  269,  283, 

tles,   4-16,  33,   52,   55,   163,  169, 

429. 

294,  295,  312,  322,  404,  406-4171 

Divorce,  120. 

421. 

Doctrinal   statements   in  the  Pas- 

Gessius Florus,  276. 

toral  Epistles,  259,  282. 

Gladiatorial  shows,  179,  347. 

Doctrine,  Continuity  of,  336-340. 

Gnosticism,  its  rapid  progress,  37 ; 

Doctrine  of  the  Twelve  Apostles, 

its  problem,  38;  its  moral  teach- 

69, 96,  108,  115. 

ing,  44,  53,  151. 

Dellinger,  8,  129. 

Godet,  34. 

Doxology  addressed  to  Christ,  249. 

Gcethe,  79. 

Dress  of  women,  loi. 

Golden  ages  of  the  Church,  264. 

2NDE)t. 


4:^5 


Grammatical   errors   in    Scripture, 

394. 
Gregory  the  Great,  231,  232. 
Gregory  of  Tours,  233. 


Hadrian,  89. 

Handling  aright,  370. 

Hands,  Imposition    of,  63,  64,   67, 

166,  167,  315. 

Hands  lifted  in  prayer,  97,  98. 

Hausrath,  9,  407. 

Hegeslppus,  6,  337. 

Helius,  275,  427. 

Heresy,  Meaning  of  in  New  Testa- 
ment, 296-299. 

Heresy  and  magic,  383. 

Heretical  teachers,  53,  382. 

Hermas,  108,  125. 

Hermogenes,  319-323, 

Hippolytus,  128. 

Hitzig,  9,  407. 

Hooker,  285,  286. 

Husband  of  one  wife,  1 18. 

Huxley,  173. 

Hymenaeus,  The  punishment  of, 
74-76,  373. 

Hymns,  Ancient  Christian,  134, 

Ideal  Church,  1 16. 

Ignatius,  5,  10,  33,  69,  113,  114, 378. 

Immer,  9,  407. 

Imposition  of  hands,  63,  64, 67,  166, 

167,  315. 

Imprisonments  of  St.  Paul,  13,  24, 

28,  362,  401. 
Imprisonment  of  Timothy,  24. 
Incarnation,  The,  44,  358,  359. 
Inspiration  of  Scripture,  381,  393- 

396. 
Intercession,  %t^^  86,  326. 
Irenaeus,  6,  1 12,  1 13,  294,  338,  373, 

415- 


Jannes  and  Jambres,  379-383. 

Jerome,  230,  360. 

Jewish  Gnosticism,  33,  34. 

Job,  76,  77,  192. 

Julian  the  Apostate,  230,  231, 

Justin  Martyr,  6,  96,  119. 

KoLLING,  8. 

Krenkel,  9,  207,  407, 

Lambeth  Conferences,  266, 

Last  days,  377. 

Latin   Fathers  and  Pagan  culture, 

227,  230,  232. 
Laver  of  regeneration,  285-292. 
Lemme,  9,  407. 

Lightfoot,  Bishop,  1 13,  227,  361. 
Linus,  113,  338,415,416. 
Lion's  mouth,  426. 
Liturgical  forms  in  New  Testament, 

83,  134. 
Lois,  21,  388. 

Lord,  when  used  of  Christ,  424. 
Luke,  23,  27,  207,  209,  421-423. 
Lystra,  21,  22,  24. 

Magic,  383. 

Mahometanism  and  slavery,  182. 

Maine,  159. 

Manumission   of  slaves,   l8l,   184, 

248. 
Marcion's  rejection  of  the  Pastoral 

Epistles,  4,  5,  8,  10. 
Mark,  409,  410. 
Marriages,  Second,  122,  125, 
Mill,  J.  S.,  39. 
Milligan,  1 17. 
Missions,  266. 
Money,  Love  of,  1 93- 1 98. 
Montanus,  70,  115. 
Mouth  of  the  lion,  426. 
Muratorian  Canon,  6,  14. 

28 


434 


INDEX. 


Mystery,  Meaning  of  in  New  Testa- 
ment, 132,  135. 

Nero,   14,  89,  275,  414,  419,  422, 

426. 
Newman,  J.  H.,  39,  40,  233-235, 387. 
Nicodemus,  Gospel  of,  380. 
Numenius,  379. 

Obedience,  Duty  of,  272,  275. 

Onesimus,  411, 

Onesiphorus,  313,   319,   320,   323, 

414. 
Ordination,  60,  d-^,  220,  314. 
Origen,  125,  228,  229,  379. 
Origin  of  the  Christian   ministry, 

104-I17. 

Pastoral  Epistles,  Character  of,  3, 

4,  IS,  16,  201,  309,  312. 
Paul  III.,  Pope,  50. 
Pedanius  Secundus,  17^ 
Persecution,  54,  275. 
Peshitto,  6. 

Pfleiderer,  8,  10,  II,  407. 
Philetus,  373. 
Phraseology  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles, 

7,  26,  47,  52,  404,  424. 
Phygelus,  319,  323. 
Plato,  178,  240,  241. 
Pliny  the  Elder,  379,  38a 
Pliny  the  Younger,  83,  134, 
Polycarp,  5,  338. 
Polygamy,  119. 
Prater,  Forms  of,  96. 
Prayers  for  the  dead,  325 — 330. 
Presbyters  or  elders,  67,  112,  115, 

118,  166,  214,  217,  221. 
Priesthood,  The  idea  of,  I17. 
Prisca,  413,  414. 
Prophecies  on  Timothy,  62-64. 
Prophet,    Meanings   of   the   term, 

65. 


Prophets  in  New  Testament,  66, 
69 ;  in  the  Primitive  Church,  70, 
96,  115. 

Public  worship,  95-IO2. 

Pudens,  415. 

Punishment  of  Hymenaeus  and 
Alexander,  74-76. 

Rationausm,  387. 

Red  Sea,  Passage  of  the,  a  type  of 

baptism,  289. 
Regeneration,  Laver  of,  285-292. 
Religious  emotion,  the  use  of,  244- 

247. 
Renan,  8,  II,  79,  276,  355,  407. 
Resurrection,  Belief  in  the,  355-359, 

372. 
Reunion  of  Christendom,  267. 
Reuss,  II. 
Revisers,  Changes  made  by  the,  32^ 

47,   59,  219,  268,  269,  285,  354, 

371,  391. 
Roman  Church,  Its  neglect  of  St, 

Paul,  28,  400,  420,  421. 

Salmon,  8,  113,  407. 

Satan,  Delivering  unto,  74. 

Satan,  Personality  of,  77-80. 

SchaflF,  395. 

Schleiermacher,  78. 

Second   Advent,  Nearness  of  the, 

378,  428. 
Second    Roman   imprisonment    of 

St.  Paul,  13,  28,  362,  401. 
Second  marriages,  122,  125. 
Shamelessness  in  serving  God,  370. 
Slavery,  175-184,  248-250,  253-257. 
Sobriety  in  religion,  241,  245. 
Socialism,  185-187. 
Solidarity  of  Christendom,  86. 
Strauss,  79. 
Superstition  and  heresy,  384. 


INDEX. 


435 


Fatian's    rejection    of     i    and    2 

Tim.,  8,  202. 
Tertullian,  6,    lo,  89,  90,  98,   lOI, 

128,  166,  227,  294,  295,  300,  339, 

346. 
Thanksgivings  for  all  men,  92. 
Theophilus  of  Antioch,  6. 
Threefold  ministry,  22 1. 
Tiberius,  425. 
Tigellinus,  275. 
Timothy  compared  with  St.  John, 

19-21. 
Timothy  at  Corinth,  23,  24,  29. 
Titus  compared  with  Timothy,  209. 
Titus  at  Corinth,  204-206. 
Titus  in  Dalmatia,  410. 
Trinitarian  doctrine,  283,  284. 
Trophimus,  414,  415,  419, 
Trullo,  Council  in,  155. 


Tychicus,  410,  411. 
Tyndale,  412,  413. 

Verbal  inspiration,  393. 

Visible  means  an  aid  to  faith,  291. 

Washing  of  regeneration,  285-292 
Waterland,  293,  306. 
Weiss,  7,  15. 
Weisse,  9,  407. 
Widows,  153-155,  158,  163. 
Will,  Freedom  of  the,  40,  41,  57. 
Women,  Social  position  of,  256. 
Women's  dress,  loi,  102. 
Worship,  Public,  95,  100. 
Wordsworth,  Bishop  C,  134, 

Zenas,  203,  208. 
Zwickau  prophets,  701 


Date  Due 


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